Jusenkyo Knights
by OkenHoratio
Summary: A group of friends finds themselves in for a interesting summer thanks to some spring water one father brought back from China. Now they must not only learn to keep their new 'bodies' secret, but deal with a threat that will find its way into their lives.
1. Chapter 1

Foreword: This story does contain characters from the original series, but they do not start making appearances until chapter 9 and onward. Obviously I don't count the times Ryoga is seen asking where he is or where Furinkan high school is. Characters that will make an appearance are kinda limited but these make appearances: Cologne(Ke Lun), Happosai, Ryoga, and lastly Ranma briefly. Please bear with me.

Chapter 1

Tomfoolery with Cursed Spring water

Tyler stepped outside of his high school and took a deep breath, freedom upon him at last, his friend Zack coming up beside him and fiddling with a candy bar wrapper that just wouldn't tear open. Zack starting biting at the wrapper as Tyler turned to walk away "See ya at Mikes place!"

Zack nodded his head as he went to find his bus, the wrapper putting up more fight than a feisty bass being reeled in by a fisherman. Tyler on the other hand was walking home, finding today to be just too nice to pass up a good walk. Taking another deep breath of his freedom not just for the summer but from school as well sine he had finally graduated, this made it seem that much sweeter. He would have enjoyed the day a bit more before someone walking past shoved him into a pole and called him something he couldn't make out.

Standing he rubbed his head and skulked off to find his bus. Sarcasm was one thing Tyler rarely used but given how he didn't want to walk home with a large lump he decided it best to deal with the other kids on the hyperactive cheese wagon 214. Passing a way too cheerful bus driver, he took a seat and leaned against the window, final finding the right words to fit "Starting the summer with a concussion, I can already see this will be a great summer."

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David left a local T.G.I. Fridays and kicked a pole sitting outside the building as he was turned down for a job. A moment later he was lighting up a cigarette and mumbling about T.G.I. being unholy beasts hell bent on denying proper employment. Blowing a cloud of smoke out of his mouth he started to head home, having been 0-3 today, the need to go home and hop on his computer was rising.

"Starting the summer jobless, I can already see this will be a great summer."

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Alex jumped on a pole and began to twirl around on it as his girlfriend shook her head at his display. The man was acting like a kid, of course with Alex it tends to be hard to tell when he's acting. He jumped down after his lady called him a loser and charged her. Inches from her face he stopped and returned the insult with some clever nugget of gold that only the couple would get. As they kissed a crying made them look down at the stroller holding their baby. Like most young couples nowadays they had a kid way too young for their own good, but they didn't care.

Alex scooped up their son Joshua as he held him up in the air and then brought him down, doing the usual things a parent does to keep their babies happy. Turning he kissed Amber on the cheek and smiled, his comment somehow twisted by fate to match something said somewhere else "Beautiful day with my lady and baby. Damn, this is going to be a great summer!"

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Michael shuffled outside onto his back porch and screwed a cigarette between his lips. After lighting it up, he blew out a cloud of smoke and turned his eyes to the sun. Staring at the blazing ball indirectly for a second he turned and leaned against the railing of the porch after shifting under an overhang. Reaching up he scratched the back of his head through his shoulder length brown hair, usual it was in a ponytail, but having the day off from work he didn't see a point in putting it up.

To most people he looked like a scruffy person as he had a goatee that tended to make him look like a more younger more rugged version of Russell Crowe from the movie State of Play, save for the eyes. The trait of Michael's that he was proud of was his squinted eyes, making him look a certain anime character if he shaved and dyed his hair blue.

Looking up at at a pair of birds that were singing to each other it seemed he sighed and finally spoke "Why the hell does summer have to be so DAMN HOT!"

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Time had passed and Mike shook his head at his friend who had pulled up, his hair now in a ponytail as it shook with each turn of his head. Alex smiled as he rubbed a hand through his short light brown hair. He ran up and stood in front of Michael, having known each other since the 3rd grade Alex was always inches taller as he stood over the shorter man. Mike opened his eyes a bit more given how the sun wasn't hanging overhead anymore, but starting to sink into the horizon. Mike eyed Alex's hair than checked the time on his cellphone "You said you'd be here about half an hour ago. She make you cut it again?"

"She doesn't like guys with long hair. How late am I?"

"Two hours...."

"Wasn't that long, was it?"

"I swear you have no sense of time, but your sense of direction is just flawless."

Alex just smiled and nodded his head as he had known that for some time. Mike sat on the front steps leading up to his front door and Alex sat with him. Not wanting to unravel the logic of his friend for fear of going mad he pulled out a cigarette and began to smoke. Alex shifted his position every now and again to remain out of the smoke muttering the same phrase every time he had to move "God damn smokers."

Michael smiled as the wind constantly seemed to change every now and again just to mess with Alex it seemed. Finally after finishing, Mike deposited the butt into a small bucket with sand in it by the steps as Alex sat down. Normally Alex didn't come down to hang out on their weekly game night as it was starting to cut into his wallet in terms of gas, but he made an exception to the rule now and again. Alex leaned back on his arms as he looked up at the clouds passing by "Think of anything for the summer aside from work yet?"

"I was thinking we could all head up to Kings Dominion one weekend."

"Have to be a Saturday and Sunday trip, can't pull a three day weekend."

"That's fine, knew you'd say that. Metlife must suck huh?"

"Nah, good money, just boring work."

"Giving up crappy jobs and dealing with assholes everyday to get a grown up job, I was rather surprised."

"Hey I can play with the big boys too ya know."

They laughed at the twist in fact of Alex getting a grown up job, this being the kind of person who could drive you more insane than any five year old could at times, other times he'd act like the coolest person in the world with the mentality of a kid. Mike on the other hand tended to be more mellow except when playing video games, losing was never a calm thing for him as Alex has beaten him in games alot since they were little. Still he tended to be reliable when something came up, his generosity among his friends and co-workers was unfathomable at times. Around his close friends he's crude, but to strangers and others he can be charming at times much like Alex, who seemed to be charming 24/7 somehow. Speaking of crude Mike chuckled to himself "Hey, should we take Tyler to that strip club this year or put that off and go to an anime convention?"

Alex and Mike laughed a bit as they had been teasing Tyler for a while, both of them and their friend David had been to a certain club a few times and promised to take Tyler someday. They had planned to try and humiliate him at the club, but tricking him into thinking they were going to the club would be just as good. Just as they were planning to discuss the events of the summer more, David and his younger brother Tyler showed up. Waving to them before standing up, Mike pulled out another cigarette as did David and they united their efforts of making Alex shift around to avoid breathing in the smoke before they heard him say "F'ing Smokers."

Dave laughed before pulling his cigarette out of his mouth and using his free hand to flick at the side of his cheek while his mouth moved, making a waterdrop like noise. Alex made the same noise as it had become a rather strange form of greeting between the two. Alex himself learned it from Ferris Bueller's Day Off many a year ago. Tyler looked at Mike and greeted him by lightly pounding knuckles with him "Sup Mike, what you guys up to?"

"Talking about plans for the summer. Alex and myself had been discussing the idea of the usual game night, with a possible trip to Kings Dominion with everyone. And to finish off the summer we were thinking-CHRIST IT'S HOT!" Mike stubbed out his butt in the buttcket from before and went inside to cool off, Alex laughing as he followed. Tyler went in and David finished his cigarette before going into his friends house.

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"Alright so game nights, Kings Dominion, and finally either a anime convention or a strip club. What do you guys think?"

Alex looked around Mike's living room as he hadn't been to his house in a few weeks when he noticed something out of place. "Isn't your Mom and Dad usually here by now?"

"Dad went to some Aikido seminar in Japan or something. Mom is staying late at work."

Tyler raised an eye brow in confusion "Why go to Japan for that?"

Mike shook his head at Tyler and refused to answer because no one other than Mike had actually taken martial arts. Having taken Aikido and Kenpo with his dad a few times at the Dojo that was a decent drive away. The reason for going to Japan was that it was a gathering of the International Aikido Society and they were founded in Japan. "Enough about my family. Now, what shall we choose? Strip club of anime convention?"

"Strip club." Tyler didn't need much though as he was all gung ho about the club.

"Hey Mike, remember that one stripper that gave you a lap dance." David said, recalling a stripper that had overheard them. She had played A lap dance is so much better when the stripper is crying by the Blood hound gang after over hearing Michael joke about it.

Mike faked a scowl at the thought, but failed as he quickly smiled and chuckled "Yeah, but she wasn't crying!"

Alex, David, and Mike all laughed at the fun times they had when a knock came at the door. Mike stood up and walked down the stairs to the landing in front of the door. Opening it and expecting to see his Mom, he instead saw the last member of their evil little group. Zack stepped in the door and pounded knuckles with Mike like Tyler did and headed upstairs as Mike closed the door behind him "Bought damn time you got here Prozack!"

Zack had earned the nickname Prozack mostly due to the fact that Mike had a brother named Zach and they need to tell them apart. Even after Zach had moved out, Prozack still stuck as a habit. Zack said his hellos to the others before sitting in an empty seat. Mike quickly knocked the seat over making Prozack fall out of the chair "MINE!" was all that preceded the kicking before Mike picked up the chair and sat in it.

Zack found another place to sit and sat as he and Mike both flipped off various birds at each other, both making strange faces all the while. Tyler quickly spoke up acting like a mature adult "Gentlemen, please! I'm sure we can come to some form of agreement here!"

Mike and Zack quickly flipped off Tyler before everyone laughed. Mike cleared his throat before getting back on topic "Zack, Strip club or Anime Convention?"

Zack shrugged "I've never been to an anime convention before, I vote for that."

"You haven't been to a strip club have you?"

Zack put on his best innocent smile before Mike cocked an eye brow at the youth.

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Two weeks had passed and the five friends once again sat around in Mikes living room. Upon a large coffee table sat two flatscreen TVs, Two Xbox 360s which were connected to the Internet. Both TVs showed the game Left 4 Deads main screen as the four stood around. Alex, David, and Prozack all sat at the ready to play versus mode online as Tyler pouted in a red recliner to the side. Alex and David sat on computer chairs brought over from other rooms of the house while Mike and Prozack sat on the couch. The decision of odd man out was left up to a quick Street Fighter IV tournament.

Mike being the sole owner prevailed in his match up, Alex being the fighting game guru amongst them was obviously secured in being one of the first to play. Prozack showed some remarkable luck as he won out in his match, making David and Tyler battle for their position. Tyler lost to some obvious corner pinning from David which he accused David of being unfair. Both Alex and David gave Tyler grins and commented that "Alls fair in love and war." making him pout in the recliner waiting his turn.

"Alright, we're going to work clockwise starting with me giving up first. Then Zack, then David, then Alex. Rinse, repeat." Mike said as the group nodded. With that said they all got invited to join a lobby, Mike's other, and eldest brother CJ who lived up in another county. Joining the Lobby, Mike and the others quickly choose to play infected first as his brother chose to be one of the survivors. When people joined, the game commenced and they began to roflstomp the other team.

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After they reached a checkpoint later on in the game, Mike handed his controller to Tyler and tiptoed his way out of the cluster of people and stretched his arms and legs. The score for our heroes reached close to 3000 while the other team was still lower than the mid hundreds. The power of teamwork among the friends was a thing to be feared when it came to video games or other activities. Mike watched as his friends grabbed weapons and medkits in the game and turned when he heard the front door open. Checking the clock it was 11:47 P.M. and everyone was home, save for one person.

"Hey Dad! How was Japan?" Mike asked, the others quickly shouted out "Hello Mr. Last-Name-That-Will-Not-Be-Mentioned."

"Well there's a story to that." Mike's Father sighed before placing his bag on the landing and closing the door behind him. He picked up his bag again and walked upstairs as Mike followed. Once upstairs they headed straight, the kitchen being opposite the front door. Mike watched his Dad place one bag on the island counter top, and two more on the tiled floor. He sat on a stool and Mike followed suit as he started to unzip a bag.

"By some strange mishap, the meeting changed locations because of some incident in the Japanese hall. So they moved it to one located in China. You can imagine how big a pain it was to get the embassy to approve that trip before I headed over with several others from America. After all that hoohaa was taken care of, the seminar was great, did some hiking with the group to an old mountain village, learned some interesting things, even brought you back a souvenir."

Mike perked up at Souvenir hoping for the usual thing he asked for but never got, which was a monkey. This time didn't prove to change that cycle either as his Dad took out a small crate and opened it. Inside were several bottles with what looked to be water sloshing around inside. Mike pulled two out and noticed the labels were different save for one consistent small set of calligraphy. Not being able to read Chinese he assumed it was the brand name of the water. "What is it?"

"Natural spring water, said to be very special when I asked our guide. I figured since you've been practicing Aikido and Kenpo a bit more, maybe an ancient Chinese secret might make you want to come back to the dojo instead of practicing in the back yard. I'm going to bed, try to keep it down, ok?" His dad squeezed his shoulder as a silent good night before grabbing the bag on the floor and heading to his room. Mike called out to his Dad as he disappeared into the hall "Night Dad, thanks for the mysterious mineral waters."

Mike put the waters back inside the crate and closed the lid, he noticed a bit of English written on the side and leaned in to take a better look. "Bayankala Mountain Range Spring Water." and the words Qinghai Province written underneath. Mike assumed it was just a local water distributor in China and paid it no mind as he hoisted up the crate and took it downstairs.

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After a few hours had pass the group was now watching a movie they'd seen a hundred times as David and Tyler both started to moan, saying "Video games are kinda boring right now."

Mike and Alex both had shared glances at this comment, a fourth of their game nights ending this way at times. As always they humored them and popped in a movie they could all watch. Alex fiddled with a pair of the water bottles before passing them around to everyone via "think fast!". The group sat there looking at the bottles with some skepticism as to weather or not they should drink from them. No one knows how it started but a game of hot potato involving the bottles quickly started as they began tossing the bottles up while quoting the movie Blazing Saddles. Mike eventually chuckled as he began to quote his favorite line from the movie "Hey, where are the white women at?"

Just then a flash and loud crash made the five boys nearly jump out of their skins, their minds slipping as they didn't catch the bottles. The power in the house had gone out too, making it hard to catch said bottles, but the sound of glass breaking and several "OW!"s being shouted at once made it clear everyone had been bit by a bottle before it broke open on them.

When the lights flicked back on they all looked at one another noticed something very strange and sudden. No longer where five young men sitting around the room, but four animals and a red haired girl. The girl blinked before looking at the others and said "WHAT THE F-!" another flash of lightning and a crash of thunder covered up her yelling.

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Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

The characters Mike, Alex, Amber, Baby Joshua, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 2: Stop me if you've head this one before....

P.S. I have nothing against TGI Fridays.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Stop me if you've heard this before....

When the lights flicked back on they all looked at one another noticed something very strange and sudden. No longer where five young men sitting around the room, but four animals and a red haired girl. The girl blinked before looking at the others and said "WHAT THE F-!" another flash of lightning and a crash of thunder covered up her yelling.

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Silent terror gripped the group as they looked at one another. The remains of the broken bottles laying on the floor before where each of the former boys once sat. Alex was gone, in has place sat a rumpled pile of wet clothes and a soggy ferret blinking as it looked just was confused as the others. David was replaced by a white Corsac Fox wearing his leather coat around its body, the sleeves too long for the foxs legs. An Osprey flapped its body about trying to get dry as it seemed a bit flustered by the fact it was wet, on a pile of wet cloths, and a bird in general. Tyler was out of place completely as he had two bottles on the floor, the two containers most likely having collided prior to breaking, spilling more than one type of water on him. The result was a tiger with cloved hooves like a wild boars, a reptilian tail covered in green scales and notably quiet long, the same scales going up the back and spreading out at the shoulder blades. Even with the way that the tiger looked the animals were all shocked enough that that didn't freak out.

The most interesting by far was not the tiger but the girl. A red headed woman with asian characteristics sat where Michael once was, she was also wearing his clothes. Looking down at herself she would notice two ample mounds on her chest that she knew shouldn't be there. Quickly realizing something she leaned back and reached under the waist of her pants and the boxers beneath, her face going pale as she removed her hand and stared off into space "It's.... it's gone..."

After they came back to their senses and realized what had happened to them, the animals and girl all fluttered about the room trying to be quiet as they freaked out, having no idea what had happened to them. Luckily Mike's family were sound sleepers, the sound of bombs dropping wouldn't rouse them from their slumber, but this group of five decided to freak out in a quiet manner anyways. After a while the girl calmed herself before doing the same with the animals as she began to realize they were once the people she knew. Mike instructed them all to take deep breathes before they all breathed out slowly and felt themselves calming down if just briefly.

The ferret that was once Alex staggered over to the coffee table and stood on it's hind legs as it reached for a cup. Earlier during the start of the movie that was now starting up again he had gone to fetch himself some tea, having to microwave the water as the kettle couldn't be used at this time of night just in case. Reaching out with tiny paws he tried to lift the warm cup but wound up tipping it over onto itself making the others go bug eyed before Mike slapped her hand over her eyes and said "What the hell, put you pants on whiteboy!"

Alex patted himself down as Mike left the room and came back with some towels. The red head tossed one to Alex which he used to cover himself before taking another and drying his hair. "What the hell just happened, why did I change back?!"

Mike thought a moment before it dawned on him and he ran upstairs. Moments later the sound of water running in what must have been the kitchen sink made them wonder what he was doing before Mike returned downstairs, his shirt steaming and a large smile on his face "I think hot water changes us back...."

Alex looked at Mike puzzled for a moment before lifting up his cup "But mine was hot tea though...."

The two continued to debate their theories as Mike emptied the pockets of everyone's pants before gathering up their clothes and heading into the back room. Tossing their clothes into the dryer he turned it on before going off to change his own clothes. The three remaining animals watching Alex and Michael bounce ideas off each other.

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Alex was picking up the broken shards of glass from the bottles and tossing them into the crate as he cleaned up the downstairs. The parts with labels he dried any remaining water off of and placed them into a shoe box from Michael's room. Michael had told Alex to do so since he was hoping to find out where the water came from and what was in it later on. While this was going on Michael was leading the animals into the downstairs bathroom one by one and soaking them in a quick hot shower, changing them back as they had predicted.

Mike turned on the hot water for the fox, the curtain having been drawn to give David some privacy when he changed back. Mike removed his hand from teh shower as it turned on to avoid it from getting his long sleeve soaked and grabbed a towel sitting on the counter and slung it up over the shower curtain railing as David called out a 'thanks' before Michael left the bathroom and shut the door. He walked back into the living room and watched as Tyler and Prozack finished cleaning up the last of the water with some towels before throwing them in the crate with the broken bottles.

Eventually Dave joined them fully dressed and they all sat down. Alex yawned from the nights strange excitement that had been caused, David picked up his pack of cigarette and began pulling out ones that had gotten a little wet and tossed them into the crate, Tyler played with one of Mikes cats that had come downstairs after a strange red haired woman ran upstairs and his owner had run downstairs, Prozack had started to nod off, and Michael screwed a cigarette between his lips before standing quickly. The rest of the ground jumped slightly and Prozack jerked himself awake as they all watched their eldest member look at the wall before turning and heading upstairs to the landing, motioning for everyone to follow. They did so and found themselves all outside as Mike light up. David followed shortly after and Alex wrinkled his nose up at the smell of smoke "F'ing Smokers."

Mike took a drag before letting the smoke out of his mouth and looked at the others standing on the front steps of his house, under the nice overhang. Mike on the other hand was standing on the sidewalk as he faced them. In hushed tones the group began to discuss what had just happened, trying to make sense of why they had randomly turned into animals and a girl. The most common concensus was that the water in the bottles was the source of this new found pain in their collective asses. Mike nodded as he looked at them but asked a question that got them stumped "Why the hell did hot water change us back?"

A flash of lightning and a loud crack of thunder seemed to preced the sheets of rain that poured down from the heavens. The group watched as Mike was drenched behind the curtain of rain before he stepped under the over hand to have the group find he was once more a she. The soggy red head looked at her wet cigarette with distraught before tossing it into the buttcket. Alex quickly stepped inside as Mike started digging around in their pockets, the sound of running water could be heard, if anyone bothered to look they'd see Alex coming down the stairs with a mug full of hot water as he returned to the group.

Alex quickly splashed the water on the red head and made her return to her original form. Pulling another cigarette out, Mike smiled as he light it up and made Alex go back inside to avoid the smoke. The soggiest person of the group smiled as he took a drag off the stick between his lips, the general idea of these odd changes coming to him now. "Well, I have good news and bad news guys...."

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Several weeks had gone by, the group officially labeling these changes to be curses as they've caused nothing but trouble for them all. Alex managed to get by without incident thanks to his job being a quiet simple one. Tyler and Zack both had close calls on a few occasions about being discovered. Zack had gone for a walk and almost got caught by a bunch of kids running around with squirt guns. Tyler had seen multiple moments of dread when rain, someone slipping and almost hitting him with a cold beverage, or a car splashing a puddle threatened to transform him in public. David hadn't much to worry about as he'd been applying to jobs online from home and participating in an series of online arena matches with a game that will remain unnamed. Mike usually avoided unnecessary outtings in the past few weeks but still attended his job and other things while not avoiding spending too much time in the line of fire like David and Zack.

Tuesday night had rolled along and the group found themselves in Mike's living room again, the last get together with everyone included being the night they were cursed. Mike had somehow been placed in charge of contacting everyone once a week to ensure security of their secret to prevent themselves from becoming tabloid super stars of some kind. David being the type to shrug off real life duties when he deemed them unimportant to him. Tyler and Zack just didn't have the means of know how of organizing the check ups too well, Alex was swamped with work and his family leaving Michael. Michael was usually the person that was found keeping things organized at times given how Alex was know to be a more spur-of-the-moment kind of guy.

Sitting around the coffee table, the chairs were arranged almost in a business meeting like style, why this was exactly was beyond even the group of boys. As they sat each one of them was talking about one thing or another, David listening to Alex and smiling as he fiddled with his pack of cigarettes. Tyler played with a black cat that belonged to Michael, the beast getting the evil eye from Alex as it had somehow dropped a vacuum on his head once. Prozack was playing on his PSP, the sounds of battle coming quietly out of the speakers as he paid attention to no particular conversation. Mike sat groaning a bit as he pressed a compress against his shoulder, having worked himself a bit too hard in his personal practice.

"Judging from what Mike has told me we seem to be scraping by with our new selves. An recently I've gotten a bonus. I've decided to celebrate the bonus by paying for an early trip to Kings Dominion! Of course, food money and the like are all on you guys. I'm only handling the hotel and entry fees." Alex said with a bit of a smile as he showed an unusual generosity. Him and David both had strange evil little smiles on their faces as Tyler and Zack cheered, Mike on teh other hand was sore from Kenpo practice and felt cheering to be out of the question. Alex and Dave nodded to each other as they both looked at Mike. Mike saw this and noticed them staring "Wh-what are you looking at me like that for?"

"As the final piece of business before we start up game night, Mike you're going to be needing a new swimsuit." Alex and David both chuckled as Tyler and Zack spent the next few moments looking from the chuckling duo to the now pale Mike. The latter being looked at didn't know whereever to wet himself or run as he started to get a very bad feeling going up his spine.

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Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physilogical, behavriol, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 3: Have Ferret Will Travel!

P.S. Tibet is not in fact free


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Have Ferret Will Travel!

Alex, David, Tyler, Zack, and a certain red head all sat in Alex's car on their way to Kings Dominion, the announcement to make the trip was made just a week ago. Elle, Mike's assumed name in his current form, sat in the front passenger seat as the group sang along to Sell Out by the Reel Big Fish. Normally Elle would be joining in but given how she was forced to come as a girl as well as other circumstances that made her resent the people she called friends. She had no idea how it happened but she was somehow talked into buying a new swimsuit, clothes, underwear, and anything else she'd need for the trip and then some. Overall she was mortified at how Alex and David had treated her like some doll for their own amusement. She had come prepared to go to the water park despite the fact the others wouldn't be joining her.

Elle lay her head on her arms as she stared out the window, the wind whipping her hair about as the car made its way down the road. She didn't even want to look at the others she couldn't face them in her current state. Not only was she wearing clothing made for girls, but she was somehow found herself to have bought a swimsuit that was underneath her clothing. She assumed Alex and David had used some strange Jedi mind trick on her a few days ago when they had dragged her shopping. Shifting her leg a bit to get more comfortable she felt it hit the bag she'd brought, a spare set of clothes held within as well as a towel.

Closing her eyes and sighing heavily, she mad a mental note to try to by pass the water park section of Kings Dominion. She felt that resorting to blackmail in a last ditch effort would probably be necessary. As the car traveled down the road, Elle started to think back to the shopping trip.

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Two days before the trip Alex and David each had a hand wrapped around one of Elle's wrist as she had a look of pure panic upon her face. Not only was she in public, but she was a she! Being in her cursed form around anyone but the others of their little circle made he very uncomfortable. But luckily Alex and David planned ahead, having had Elle wear a zipped front hoodie, the hood pulled up over her head to hide her a bit. Not that they would mind being seen with the red head firmly in tow. Not really sure weather she should break free and run or act like a lead weight Elle simply followed. At least she did until she saw the store that the boys were heading too.

"Oh god! I am not a plaything!" Elle quietly blurted out to the two as they smiled contently, walking through the doors leading beneath a large sign that read Victoria's Secret. Terror turned her blood ice cold as she heard the doors shut behind her. Alex must have measured Elle in her sleep or something as he seemed to throw out measurements before David called over a salesperson. The woman measured Elle and looked at her kinda shocked at the apparent lack of upper support on the girl. Elle was glad the hoodie was pulled over her head thoroughly as it hid the red on her face as the saleswoman spoke out the same numbers as Alex making him smile as if he had done something right.

Elle had no idea what was going on before her, Alex knew what he was doing or at least Elle hoped he did. The young man rifled through some racks as if knowing what he was looking for, his experience of hanging around Amber while she had done it seemed to be guiding him. David was going through a trial and error process of helping Alex. Elle had only picked up one or two garments, staring at them with the utmost confusion on her face as she puzzled why it had to be so complex when it came to women's underwear. Before an answer could waltz through the door and hand her the secrets of such things Alex and David dragged her towards a changing booth. Alex handed Elle several different things to try on and smiled, saying causally he'd be waiting right outside.

She swore she could have heard quiet laughter from the two as she looked around the booth. A small shelf, some hanging hooks, and a large mirror were all that decorated the room. Swallowing she placed the underwear on the shelf and slipped off her shoes. Not feeling too comfortable she hesitated multiple times before finally closing her eyes and undressing. blindly hanging her hoodie and shirt on the hooks she undid the buckle of the belt she had snagged from home to hold her pants on her waist in her current form. Removing the pants she slipped off her boxers and hung them from the hook as well. Swallowing she felt around and tried to remember where the shelf was when she opened her eyes after unsuccessfully groping around. She went bug eyed when she saw herself in the mirror.

Having avoided it up to this point there was no turning back now. Elle quickly shook her head as she had found her eyes glued to certain points of herself in the mirror and shuddered as she quickly grabbed a set of the underwear she had been handed and slipped it on. After a few minutes she found they all fit and sighed, removing the last one and placing it on the shelf. She quickly grabbed her boxers and pants, returning them to their rightful positions on her body before she looked at the bras piled softly on the shelf. Reaching out she took one down and looked at the label, a look of distraught thought upon her face at the cup size printed on the label.

Having had her share removing a few, she was able to quickly slip it on and snap it closed. Finding the sensation of support to her chest to be a bit relaxing she looked herself dead in the eye of her reflection and quietly spoke to herself "This thing is so comfortable it's scary...."

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Elle emerged from the Victoria Secret with her head hung low, a pink bag now held in one hand as she followed behind her so called friends. Before leaving the saleswoman had pulled Elle aside and said it was bad for someone her age be without support to be going around without proper support or something like that and had her go slip into a set of the underwear she had bought. The feeling of her new unseen apparel obviously had made her bounce less and feel slightly more comfortable physically, but mentally she felt violated by those closest to her. She had not only bought the pair she was wearing, but the four or five that now sat inside her bag.

"So, where to next?" David asked as he had directed the question to Alex more than Elle.

"Home would be nice, I need to curl up and die soon." Elle mumbled as Alex slapped her on the back and laughed sharply.

"Don't be such a baby, you should have these things now anyways right?"

"No, cause I shouldn't even need them in the first place. Maybe I should buy you a wheel to exercise in, after all 'you should have these things now anyways right', Alex?"

Alex and David both laughed at the retort, Elle having been serious as she was going to have to shove Alex into one of those plastic balls hamsters use and roll him down a hill. The trio made their way through the mall, Elle eventually rising her head a bit but kept the hood up to hide her face as she didn't enjoy the idea of shopping for such things. That and the fact she was shopping for such things with Alex and David of all people. As they moved they passed an Asian man without paying him much heed, but Elle swore she heard him speaking to another man in rather decent English "Excuse me, where is Furinkan High School?"

Alex and David peered into various stores as they passed them before Alex came to a sudden halt making Elle bump into him. She rubbed her nose as she looked at him "Hey, don't just stop so suddenly!"

Alex smiled as he grabbed Elle and dragged her into a store called Madigan's which obviously catered to women judging by the assortment of clothing present. Dave quickly stepped after them as he pondered what Alex had in store as they began browsing the racks and shelves of clothes. Elle felt a little less uncomfortable this time around as she wasn't surrounded by so much lace like the last store she was dragged into. Elle decided she might as well pick her own clothes instead of Alex and David as they'd probably give her some that was too risque for her tastes. Elle liked plain clothes, sometimes a bit dressy, others something with a stupid saying on the shirt like "Be nice or I'll sic my ninja monkeys on you." or something along those lines. currently she was browsing some rather nice plain t-shirts and started to smile as this wasn't as hard as picking underwear. Picking up a nice black shirt with thorny vine designs upon the shoulder and down on the chest she nodded slightly to herself before slipping off to another part of the store.

Elle had found a set of pants to match the shirt she'd pick but was quickly caught by Alex and David, each shoving small amounts of clothes into her arms and pushing her towards the changing room. David chuckled as they walked "Why not put on a fashion show or something."

Alex stifled a laughing fit as the idea of Elle being graceful and elegant didn't seem possible as the red headed girl stepped into the booth mumbling to herself about having a fox hunt someday. Elle hung the clothes from the hooks again as she unzipped her hoodie and dropped it onto the would be seat in the corner of the stall. She removed her pants and boxers, placing them on the bench as well. She looked at the clothes and reached for a pair of pants "Guess I'll see what pants fit first, then do shirts."

Elle proceeded to try on the various pants presented to her by the boys sitting outside with her bag of underwear. She smiled to herself as the pants she had picked fit with just a bit of room to grow into them if needed, the legs of the pants being a bit baggier than the rest of them. She quickly put back on her boxers and male forms pants and fastened the belt around her waist. She looked at the shirts and shook her head, already ruling a few out as she wasn't wearing anything other than plain t-shirts. Pulling her shirt off she placed it on top of her hoodie and grabbed the shirt she like, slipping it over her head and looking at herself in the mirror. The shirt fit and looked good on her, but the fact it tended to hug more to her chest made her sigh as she knew the others would be worse. Taking the shirt off and going about trying on the rest.

Several minutes of trying clothes on, Elle emerged back in her hoodie and pants and shirts divided into two groups, keep and put back. She handed them the put back pile and they frowned a bit as the shirts that they had thought would be good were rejected. When they returned they had a few items tucked under their arms and a plan of mischief in their minds as they were smiling evilly to one another. Elle looked at them a bit cautiously before they handed her the new articles and told her to try them on. She shook her head and held them out for them to take "No way, that's way too much for my tastes."

"Well.... you can find a fitting pair of these things or maybe I might run short of cash for one person for the trip." Alex said trying to put up his best poker face, but it wasn't working and came off as a cross better lecherous and feigning ignorance. David wasn't even facing the same direction as her but his shoulders were shaking with what Elle could only assume was laughter and glared at Alex. She lowered the arm holding the garments and spoke in a hushed voice "What the hell man! You know I can't pay for my own meals and stuff as well as pay for room fees along with entree to the park after this little spree you forc....."

That's when it dawned on her and she blinked, he knew she wouldn't have alot of money left after they made her pay for her new clothes and she fumed silently as Alex turned around and joined David in silent laughter. Elle stomped into the changing room as they both broke into quiet laughter that caught a few customers attention as it was lasting quiet a while. Inside the changing room Elle was staring at what they had given her and she could have sworn her eye began to twitch at the swimsuit she now held in her hands before looking at the clothing set she had been given.

__________________________________________________________________________________

Thankfully her parents had gone to Vegas to visit Family for the next two weeks as she would have hated to explain why a red haired girl was fluttering about their house with only his boxers and a bra covering her while eating ramen in the kitchen. The blinds and curtains had been drawn so no one on the outside would have seen her so that made getting used to being in her current form that much easier. She finished the last of the broth in her bowl and looked at the clock, it was close to time for the blackmailing duo and company to arrive. She placed the bowl in the sink and ran some water in it before dumping it out.

Walking down to her room she sighed as she closed the door behind her. On the far wall was her bed with a computer desk next to it, resting on the bed was some blankets pushed to one side and pillows on top of them. Her bag was empty and awaiting its contents which were laid out neatly on the bed beside it. She quickly packed the change of clothing, a spare set incase something happened, and a towel into her bag. This left a swimsuit and the outfit that Alex had blackmailed her into getting. The outfit was the only thing suitable for the day ahead as it would allow her to not only dry off, but keep cool during the day. Sadly she cursed and thanked Alex for the single outfit which consisted off a black tank top and dark green shorts that stopped mid thigh. Next to this sat her new swimsuit, a greenish-gray tie side style bikini.

Elle swallowed as she dreaded wearing such a thing in public but felt she hand no choice and removed her boxers and bra. She heard a knock on the door and jumped a bit, thankful that she had thick curtains in her room. She snuck over to the window and parted the edge of the curtains a bit and saw her Four Amigos standing on the front porch. Alex and Tyler seemed to be wrestling a bit before they rolled on the lawn and Alex pinned Tyler while lightly punching him in the butt while yelling to him to stop hating his skull or something along those lines. Elle quickly ran to her bed and pulled the bikini bottom on, tightening or loosening the bottom till it fit just right, then did the same for the top. After this was said and done, she pulled on her shorts and tank top and slipped a pair of sandals on her feet and made sure they would stay on before tying her loose hair up into a ponytail and grabbing her bag.

Running out of her room and up to the door she opened it, ready to go. The boys all stopped and stared at her save for Tyler who was a human pretzel on her front lawn. Elle stepped out of her house and made sure she had her keys, phone, and cigarettes before closing the door and locking it. She felt them still staring at her and turned around, her hands quickly moving at blinding speeds before retracting, David and Prozack both falling over holding their groins. Elle smiled as she felt a bit better at getting David. Amongst the group jimmy tapping had became common place, however Mike had rarely been on the receiving end as his were the most painful and lasting among the group. Elle walked down the front steps and past Alex, not even glancing at him as she headed for his car.

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The car trip had progressed a ways as Elle reflected, the sound of David complaining about Alex cutting off a song by Metallic before it was finished made her role her eyes. David was probably the only person she knew that like Metallic let alone kept a supply available as they had found the song on the radio and Alex humored him by letting it play. The sound of Alex giving a retort that would most likely make no sense to anyone was said loudly and the sound of whirring made Elle look over and to see the edge of a CD get sucked into the cars CD player. Looking at Alex she saw him with a large grin that would put the Cheshire cat to shame as he looked at her, the grin she recognized as the one he used when trying to mend fences. Alex started to speak up with the music and Elle shook her head with a scoff.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this is the meanest song I ever wrote."

"Mean as in Michael Jackson's mean?" Elle chipped in.

"When I wrote this song I was in a bad mood and it never stopped."

"Bad like Michael Jackson's bad?"

"No, like pissed off."

There was a short pause before Elle and the voice from the stereo both spoke together ".......... Like Michael Jackson's pissed off?"

"It's called Don't Start a Band."

Both of them started to break into the lyrics together before the three in the back seat all chipped in on chorus verses as they made the turn off to Kings Dominion. Elle knew she'd get over things with Alex now, the nature of that guy in general didn't leave many mad at him after a short while. David on the other hand still held her ire and he would probably be chased in a fox hunt someday.

________________________________________________________________________________

Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

Songs mentioned in this story and any in future and past chapters are not used with permission.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 4: Rain, Rain, Stay The Hell Away!

P.S. The song they sang at the end was Don't start a band by the Reel Big Fish from their live album, the following is how it would have gone if I wrote the whole thing into the story:

Alex and Elle:

Don't start a band

No body wants to hear no body wants to hear

Nobody understands

Don't start a band

You'll be so disappointed that it was nothing like you planned

Don't start a band

Oh yea yea yea

Alex:

I hate to ruin the magic

Elle:

I hate to kill the dream

Alex:

But once you've been behind the scenes then you'll know just what I mean

Elle:

You might think that's its cool to get up on stage

David, Tyler, Prozack:

And play rock and roll from your heart and soul

Alex:

But no one shows up and your songs all suck

David, Tyler, Prozack:

And there's no applause and no flying bras

Elle:

No girls will scream for you and no ones gonna sing along with you

All:

Don't start a band

Alex:

No body wants to hear nobody understands

All:

Don't start a band

Alex:

You will be so damn terrible they'll all think your shitty and bland

All:

Don't start a band

Oh yea yea yea

'cause you wont get paid

And you won't get laid

Alex and Elle:

And even if you make it

All the way to MTV

I don't think you could take it

All the bullshit and the greed

Alex:

Everyone is so fake when they shake you hand

David, Tyler, Prozack:

And they kiss your ass 'cause then they get cash

Elle:

And the business end will turn every friend

David, Tyler, Prozack:

To an enemy oh you will see

Alex:

They'll turn their their backs and they'll be gone

All:

Faster than you can say 'what did I do wrong'

All:

Don't start a band

David:

No body really cares nobody understands

All:

Don't Start a Band

Tyler:

You will sign your lives away and then you'll be working for the man

All:

Don't start a band oh yea yea yea

Prozack:

Your message will get lost

All:

You'll get double crossed

Alex:

And if you that the joy of playing

Will keep you going through the years

Elle:

Wait till you poor and frustrated

And the fun just disappears

Alex and Elle:

Nobody cares what you have to say

And no ones gonna listen anyways

All:

Rock and roll will bring you down

And it will kick you while your on the ground

Don't start a band

Don't even try you will regret it yea

Don't start a band

You'll be so disappointed that it was nothing like you planned

Don't start a band

Oh yea yea yea

So just give up now

I'll show you how

Don't start a Band [x4]


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Rain, Rain, Stay The Hell Away!

Alex, David, Tyler, and Zack questioned where it was the heat or the red haired woman they all watched that was making them wanna pass out. Given it was hot day and there were scattered clouds, but Elle herself was also hot at this point. She lounged at the shallowest part of the tide pool, her body laying down but propped up by her elbows. Her greenish-gray bikini snuggly covering her body, although she felt it wasn't enough as she felt practically naked. Sat up and reached back pulling the hair tie that held her hair in its usual ponytail, freeing her red shoulder length hair as she twisted the tie around her thumb to hang on to it.

She glanced at the others out of the corner of her eye, their minds going to that special place that makes them question weather she should be in an adult magazine or some sports magazine with a tasteful spread or something along those lines. Anyone with common sense could tell where their minds went, this sent a shiver up Elle's spine as she felt dirty being ogled. Finally understanding how women feel a bit she stood up and walked a ways into the water before running and diving under the water as a bell rang to signal the tide pool was about to begin generating waves. Tyler fell over with a smile on his face, collapsing from one of the two latter reasons.

It wasn't until Elle disappeared beneath the water that the others went to help Tyler. Zack ran off to buy him some water while Alex and David dragged him to a lawn chair. Zack came back a moment later with a large bottle of water and handed it to Tyler as he looked up at the guys and smiled, saying something about a tomato. Alex and David both stared at each other with confused expressions as they pondered the meaning of the tomato.

_______________________________________________________________________

Elle poked the top half of her head out of the water as the waves rocked her gently in the water amidst the crowd of people in the pool. She breathed through her nose as she watched her friends all tend to Tyler and she shook her head at how stupid the whole trip was becoming, having wished she hadn't had to come, let alone buy the ridiculous swimsuit she was currently wearing. She scowled as she remembered going to the girls locker room to change out of her street clothes.

She started to blow bubbles from the frustration of not only being in a guy that went into a girls locker room, but getting compliments about her figure. It was enough to make her heave or run, arms flailing, from the locker room to strangle her friends for putting her though this hell. On the bright side of it all however, she was thoroughly enjoying the pool while her friends would have to sweat it out all day and she smiled evilly in her head 'That'll teach them for making me come to a pool. It's like going to a buffet but only their food is poisoned!'

Elle suddenly stiffened as she felt something on her hip, this thing felt very much like a hand. She immediately bolted out of the water and went up a bit as she felt a second hand on her hip shortly after the first. The sound she made was more like squeak combined with a yelp, yet not quiet a squeal. Whatever it was, it made someone behind her laugh when she landed back into the water. Elle whirled around with a face color that was close to matching her hair color "Hey you jerk! What's the big idea!?"

Elle glared at the offender and found him to be an Asian man that was close to being a head taller than her as they both stood straight up in the water. His hair was long and black, fell loosely about his shoulders even though the length went well past his collarbone. His eyes were a light brown color and stared into the inferno of Elle's eyes with little trouble. Were he standing out of the water one might have noticed his near supermodel quality physique with hints of muscle in the arms and legs. Overall he would be labeled a classic bishounen, to say the least. He smiled at Elle after he finished chuckling at her expense "Sorry about that, name's Zhou Jiyan. I must say, you look like you'd give Sea World's dolphins a run for their money when you jump out of the water like that."

Zhou began to laugh again as Elle turned her face downward and turned red with a mixture of embarrassment and anger. Needless to say the sudden touch on her hips felt like a jolt through her body and his recent comment both made her feel embarrassed. His bold display with her and his comment both made her feel anger. Needless to say she was preparing her famous Snake Strike jimmy tap when her face was suddenly pulled up to face him. He moved his face toward hers a bit and seemed to look through her, making her swallow as he spoke "My, my, my... Your eyes are a lovely shade of green, perfect contrast with that hair of yours."

Elle blinked as she felt the twitch come back to her eye again. She couldn't believe it, this guy who didn't even know her name was putting the moves on her. But for some reason, her body was in lockdown as he shifted the hand that was used to pull her head up and cupped her cheek softly. Physically she was a deer in the headlights. Mentally she was swearing up a storm and slamming the eject button to get her out of her current situation. He inched closer but thankfully the eject button worked in the shape of a water bottle that had come hurtling from the makeshift fake beach around the Tide pool.

Needless to say the splash caused by Zhou falling over had woken Elle up as she turned on her heel and made a break for her friends. From a distance she saw David, Tyler, and Zack all gawking in her direction but not at her. Meanwhile Alex was posed in a victory stance of some kind as he flipped the bird off in her direction, but not at her. She could only guess what had played out when they saw her in distress.

_______________________________________________________________________

Elle came out of the locker room in her street clothes again and had her towel draped over her head, both hands gently rubbing the towel back and forth over her hair as she approached the group "Okay, I'll admit it. That was a good shot Alex."

Alex took a bow for the compliment before straightening himself out "Why thank you. Why the hell did you let him get that close anyways?"

The group began walking as Tyler pressed a fresh bottle of water to his forehead and sighed, enjoying the cold given off by the bottle. Elle was thankful that he had collapsed from the heat instead of seeing her, mentally noting never to wear a bikini even if blackmailed, ever again. Elle pulled the towel down around her neck, both hands holding on to the end of the towel as she started to walk beside Alex "I honestly don't know. My mind was telling my body to run, but my body wouldn't listen."

"Think maybe you panicked and didn't know what to do?" Dave asked as he walked beside Elle, Alex being on the opposite side. Elle shrugged as a response to his question, she had no definite answer, but she couldn't help but feel something was off the entire time.

"You should be careful of guys like him for the rest of the trip, might be better off if you didn't go anywhere alone." Alex stated plainly.

"Yeah, I think I'm starting to get why girls travel in packs now." Elle said as she was getting too much of a view into the world of woman in a mere few days. Tyler drank from his bottle, Zack munched on some chips he bought at the poolside snack stand, David diligently watched for a smokers area, Alex shook his head at Dave and Elle for wanting to smoke, and Elle pondered just what the hell happened to her back at the pool. A thought popped into Elle's head that would have been the best solution for everyone and she turned to Alex with a smile.

"Hey, instead of me avoiding guys, why don't I just change back into a guy? Solves all our problems."

"No." the four of them said in unison. The scary part was that is was an immediate and almost practiced declination from them.

"Why?!"

"One, we don't have hot water with us. Two, we don't have a proper place for you to change in the park or parking lot." Alex said holding up two fingers.

"How about I go back to the hotel and change?"

Another digit popped up on Alex's hand "Three, I'm not wasting fun time to drive you to and from the hotel just to change into a guy."

"Geez, it's almost like you guys want me to be a chick today."

All four of them held up four fingers and recited a sentence together "Four, we don't want this to be a sausagefest."

Elle went bug eyed with surprise at how they had done it again. Same sentence, perfect timing on all their parts, it was almost as frightening as that Zhou guy from the pool. Elle looked at Alex, had this been an anime someone would have drawn a large sweat drop on her head as she spoke to him "I hope you get eaten by a shark or evil octopus someday, that'll be a nice lesson for you I think."

"Curse those evil Octopi."

"Sweet, there it is!" David said as he walked over to an overhang with three glass pane walls and a bench beneath it. The overhang itself had a butt depository where smokers could drop their spent cigarettes. David and Elle both reclined on the bench as they started smoking. Zack munched on chips, Tyler drank water, Alex mumbled "F'ing smokers."

_______________________________________________________________________

The group wandered around the park as more clouds filled the sky without them noticing. Together they went to various spots in the park, riding the rollercoasters, stopping to eat lunch at one of the places in the park. As they sat David and Alex got in a discussion about a meeting place as the group seemed to be ready to split up and go separate ways in for a short while. Zack had cut some straws from the refreshment counter and held them out to see who would be going with Elle.

David, Tyler, and Zack quickly bolted away from the table and wave wishing Alex the best of luck. As they got away from the table Zack threw a bunch of straws the same length as the one Alex drew. The three boys wanting to go around unhindered by possible jerks trying to hit on Elle. Alex clicked his teeth before dropping the cut straw onto the table and looked at Elle who was picking at the last of her fries "Draw the short straw?"

"Come on, lets hit an arcade or something." Alex said as he wanted to play. Elle nodded and picked up the remained of the fries which were burnt or nothing like a fry given the way the looked, and dumped them in the trash before following after Alex. They wandered from one arcade in the park to another, eventually Alex as walking with a huge smile on his face and a mountain of Crane game prizes in his arms.

"It's frightening how good you are getting at those." Elle commented holding a small plushie of a ferret and squeezing it. The plushie gave off a squeaking noise and she chuckled softly before holding it up in front of her face and moving the arms around "Alex! Hope you plan to drop off the booty ya got there before going for more."

Alex saw what she was doing and looked away as he tried to refrain from watching the ferret plushie. The truth being that anytime a person made an inanimate object like a plushie seem like it was alive he tended to laugh. Mike had gotten him to laugh using a finger puppet of a monkey once, the result was Alex laughing into the phone causing Amber to yell at him. Alex glanced over to see that Elle was making the plushie dance on his shoulder a bit to get him to laugh, which he did.

"I'm taking these to the car! Wait here for me!" He said while laughing. Elle herself had broken into laughter at the scene before her. Alex running through an amusement park with armfuls of prizes laughing like a madman, the sight would stick with her for a while. She saw a smokers area a short distance away and walked over to it, she saw the lack of a bench in this one but noticed marks where one had been bolted to the concrete. Shrugging she leaned her back against a glass windows and played with the ferret a bit while waiting.

Some time had passed before she noticed the over abundance of clouds in the sky and the dark color they held. The sound of thunder made her swallow hard, a feeling of worry growing at the back of her mind as she wondered if the others would be ok. She mumbled to herself as a heavy rain began to fall from the sky after a few moments of it building momentum "I'm never believing the weather man ever again."

_______________________________________________________________________

Rain pelted the windshield of Alex's car as music came out of the speakers. Alex had made it just in time to be locked in his car until the rain passed or he felt the need to use the large umbrellas they'd brought. Frankly he wanted to take a rest and let his legs have a sit down so he sat in the drivers seat of his car playing on his DS. His voice filled the car with slightly off key singing as he sang along to the song that was currently playing.

_______________________________________________________________________

David blew smoke out of his mouth as they had just made it under a large umbrella next to a bench. The smoking area they sat under was more for a quick break unlike the other ones in the park meant to withstand rain for those choosing to breath in harmful substances. Tyler sat on the bench with a pile of wet clothes next to him, an Osprey was perched on the back of the bench shaking itself clean of water softly so it wouldn't get the others wet. Tyler looked at Zack sighed "That sucks, a few steps more and you would have been nice and dry too."

The bird gave off a noise that sounded like a groan almost as David smiled and enjoyed his cigarette. He looked at Tyler when he shook his head "Better Zack than you or me. A fox or a Tiger thing running around is alot worse than a bird."

Tyler and Zack nodded as they began their wait for the rain to end.

_______________________________________________________________________

Elle leaned her head against the glass, her back still resting against it like before it started raining. She sighed as she held the ferret plushie and pondered if the others had made it someplace dry before the water got them. She watched as people ran across various parts of the park using papers, bags, ponchos and anything else they had to stay dry under the sheets of rain falling from the heavens. The sound of footsteps made her look over as someone ran up under the over hang and shook their clothes of any loose water "Whooo! And here they said no rain for at least a week too."

"Yeah, kinda sucks. Ruins alot of peoples day." Elle said in response to the man as she looked over at him. The man flicked his head back making his long hair get swept back before he looked at Elle. Looks of surprise crossed both of their faces, Elle gaining on of horror while the man got one of joy. The man from the pool was now under the same overhang as her and was fast approaching.

"Forgive me for earlier, I just thought it'd be an interesting way to break the ice. Name's Zhou Jiyan." Zhou took a bow as if to add a bit of drama to the fact he was reintroducing himself. Before Elle could react his hand was softly gripping hers and bringing it to his lips. His lips briefly brushed against the skin on the back of her hand before she drew it away and rubbed it against her shorts. Zhou righted himself and smiled at her "And what might your name be miss?"

A twitch, like a vein ready to burst could be felt on her forehead at the being called a 'miss'. Elle looked at him and huffed "Mic.... Michelle, name's Michelle. Most people call me Elle."

Elle quickly punched herself mentally as she almost said her male name. She leaned herself against the glass as far as she could without melding into the very structure of it and turned her head. As she looked out at the rain both of her hands wrapped around the ferret plushie she held as she tried to avoid eye contact. She turned and leaned her shoulder against the glass, putting her back to the guy to try and keep him from going for her face like he did at the pool.

As she leaned there contemplating ways to escape the man under the overhang with her she began to wonder if Alex would ever make it back. Zhou moved closer and leaned against the glass, his body position behind hers making a dark feeling creep Elle's spine. She swallowed as she mentally prayed lightning would strike the man into a coma of some kind so she could be safe. Behind he Zhou's dark eyes were eyeing the red heads neck and shoulders, her red hair clinging to certain parts of bare skin, the moisture being from her not properly drying her hair at the pool. Damp from the water much like the wet hand that now found itself upon her shoulder.

Elle tensed up before she slowly turned her head to face the man, a glare in her eyes that would put medusa to shame. Zhou simply smiled at her, as his finger slid across her skin and moved her wet hair out of the way. Despite her attempts at brushing or removing his hand it found its way back everytime. She was on the verge to punching the man when she saw him making his move, his face quickly heading to hers making her reflexively try to pull away. She clenched a fist as she prepared to defend herself from the mans sudden attack.

___________________________________________________________________________

Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

Kings Dominion is used without consent, should the owners find me and beat me in a game of Thumb Wrestling I will willing jump in a cursed spring to repent.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 5: Enter The Forlorn Guide

P.S. From the next chapter on, the real plot will start to come into the story.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Enter The Forlorn Guide

A pair of people stood at an intersection waiting for the "walk" sign to light up. The taller of the pair was a young man dressed in a dark green tangzhuang, his short hair held firm by a matching cap. On his back was large pack with a kettle and a pan tied to the side. He held some papers in his hand that looked strangely like mapquest directions and was mumbling to himself in Chinese. The strangest aspect of this boy wasn't his dress style or his large pack but the golden snub nose monkey resting on his shoulder looking at the map with him.

Of course most wonder who his companion was. The other person of the pair was a young girl that looked no more than being just a year or two past being ten years old. She was dressed in a baggy shirt and loose shorts with a belt holding it around her waist. She too carried a pack like the man but hers wasn't as large given her size and she had no kettle and pan tied to hers. The girl poked the man and he looked at her before noticing she was crossing the street.

Scrambling he caught up to her and began to talk to her in Chinese "Fei Yin, the map says we should be very close now. When we get there please try to mind yourself ok? We don't know if these people are cursed or not yet."

Fei Yin, the girl traveling with the man nodded "Relax Ren. I'm sure Elder Chouzu sent me along only as a back incase anything happened."

"Hahaha, I think my Father is just paranoid because it's America."

"Well you did almost get arrested three times since being here."

"How was I supposed to know Americans didn't carry a sword with them!"

"Because Americans use guns. China is the only place of Honor left in the world."

"I think years of working for those that broke away has made you a bit bitter."

Fei Yin gaze Ren a glare as she snapped at him "Mind how you speak to your elder boy, I can show you bitter."

Ren swallowed as he knew he shouldn't have gotten on her nerves, Fei Yin obviously more than a mere child.

The pair walked as the monkey, Lon-chan, curled up on the top of the pack Ren carried and started to slumber as they traveled. Arriving at their destination after several minutes Ren looked at the house and saw mail scattered upon the lawn, primarily around the front door which had been ripped off its hinges and chucked into the yard. Fei Yin picked up a piece of mail and looked at the name before nodding to Ren.

Removing his cap and scratching his dark green hair, the young man sighed "I guess we're in the right place. Most American burglars don't know how to rip a door off its hinges."

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A loud thwack followed by a loud thunk made Elle blink in surprise as something impacted into Zhou's head and made it jerk back to hit the window on the back of the overhang. The result was Zhou collapsing like a bunch of broccoli and a water bottle rolling over and coming to a stop against Elle's foot. She bent down and picked up the object, looking it over before trying to find the source. She shook her with with a sigh of relief escaping her lips. Alex smiled triumphantly as he walked towards the overhang with a large umbrella protecting him from the now lightened rain. Under his arm he held a second one which he promptly handed to Elle as she joined him under his umbrella.

"You took your sweet time getting back, a moment later and I'd have been forced to do something drastic." Elle said as she took the umbrella after tossing the water bottle into a trash bin near the overhang.

"Suuurrrree, looks to me like that time at the pool."

"How about I show you what I was going to do." Elle said as she straightened her hand out and aimed it below Alex's belt.

Alex flinched as he twisted the lower half of his body "No, no, I kinda would like to have some more kids ya know."

Elle nodded as they began to walk, their quest to find the others beginning with the rollercoaster they had mentioned heading off too.

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The group left the park after joining up with their wayward members. David held the umbrella over the heads of his brother, an osprey, and himself as he used his free hand to smoke now that he could freely do so outside the confines of the park. Elle and Alex were a short ways ahead of them and Alex held the umbrella over them as best he could while trying not to look at Elle as she used the ferret plushie against Alex again. She knew he would probably have a laughing fit once he got into the car, but it would be worth it as she was making fun of him for his earlier antics in the park where he ran laughing like a madman out of the park with armfuls of prizes he won from the crane games, of which this included the ferret being used against him by Elle.

Reaching the car Elle grabbed the umbrella and held it up so Alex could get into the car without getting wet before doing the same for David, Tyler and Zack. All three of them climbing into the back seat from the same door. Closing the door Elle walked around to the front passenger seat and climbed in, getting a little wet from having to collapse the umbrella before pulling it into the car. She buckled herself in and looked at Alex who was indeed having a laughing fit. Smiling she looked back at the others who were wondering why there were so many plushies in the seat with them. Elle couldn't help but laugh at the sit of Zack staring at a bear that looked like it wanted a hug.

Alex finally composed himself before he started the car and headed for the hotel so they could all get warm, get some food, and get some sleep.

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Back at the hotel Tyler and Zack munched on some tacos that had been bought on the way, Zack by this time had changed back into his real form and had gotten dressed. They had mindlessly chewed on their tacos as they watched the scene before them unfold. Mike was holding up his bag and had only a towel wrapped around his waist as he glared at Alex and David. The latter two were trying their best to feign innocence. Mike shook his bag once as he asked again "Where the hell did my guy clothes go!?"

Alex rubbed his chin as he closed his eyes "Hmm, missing clothes. Must be a thief of some kind."

"A hoodlum indeed, Alex." Dave chipped in as he crossed his arms over his chest "I think an investigation is required to get to the bottom of this!"

"Indeed, we can start it once we get back to Felding."

Both David and Alex continued on their tangent as Mike growled quietly and stomped back into the bathroom, slamming the door in his wake. A few minutes later the sound of running water followed by a girly yelp of surprise told them everything they needed to know. A few minutes later Elle walked out of the bathroom in a shirt and pair of sweat pants that wouldn't have fit her guy form, but fit her female form perfectly. She walked over and grabbed a taco from Alex and began munching on it before he had a chance to take a bit. Alex blinked before pointing at the taco "I think that was mine."

Elle shot him a glare before wolfing down the taco and tossing the trash into the garbage bin in the corner. The red head went over to the table where her food had been waiting for her when she finished her shower and she dug in. Her anger making her consume the food quickly before she brushed her teeth. The night was winding down and Elle climbed into bed as Tyler and Zack began to set up stuff on the floor to sleep on.

Alex began to climb into the other side of the bed when his butt met the foot of resistance that belonged to Elle. He fell to the floor and got up, peering over the edge of the bed at Elle "What's that for?"

"A gentleman would sleep on the floor. God knows what you'd do to me in my sleep." Elle said throwing a pillow and hitting him in the face. Alex rolled his eyes with a goofy smile before setting up on the floor. David snagged a pillow not being used by Elle off the bed and set up on the floor, using his jacket as a blanket. It wasn't long before David was snoozing quietly on the floor, Tyler, Alex, and Prozack following suit.

Elle lay in the bed and stared at the ceiling as she tried to sleep. The image of Zhou popping in her head as she was on the verge of sleeping jolted her awake and sent a shiver up her spine. She rolled onto her side and got comfortable while thinking of things to keep her mind preoccupied while she drifted off to sleep.

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Outside the hotel Zhou leaned against a lamp post, his clothing very business like in appearance, black suit coat, green dress shirt, black slacks, boots. He held a compress to his head where a object had struck him earlier in the day. A few men approached him and he smiled at them. He held up a small black object and tossed it at the lead of the three men "Found the target, he's got some people with him though. Seems he's adopted a new persona to help hide his identity in his female guise."

The leader of the three opened the object to reveal it was Michael's wallet. The ID inside matching the address to where they were earlier in the day. The leader of the trio held out the wallet and Zhou took it before handing the leader a camera. Zhou lowered the compress as he looked at the three others. Overall, minor people in the group they all belonged to unlike Zhou. But the person pulling the trio's strings currently gave them authority over Zhou. Zhou spoke up with his smile still present "That's the end of my scouting assignment, time to head back home if I recall."

"He wants you to continue watching the target, we have to find out what happened to the water and if anyone else got cursed. But we can handle finding out those answers. Just make sure nothing happens." The leader said browsing through pictures of Elle, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack. The trio walked off into the night to pursue the answers they had been ordered to find as Zhou smiled, leaning his head back as he put the compress on his forehead and let it sit there.

"Don't worry, no one will touch her while I'm around."

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Prozack sat up in his bedding and started at the wall for a moment "Wuzzat?"

He found the others stirring in their beds as they all started to wake up and before long the boys were standing up and stretching, one after another they headed to the bathroom. After waking up they felt something was off before Alex and David both looked at the bed and blinked. Where they looked should have been a red head sleeping soundly, but instead they saw empty sheets. They looked at each other, then the bed, to each other than it dawned on them.

"She...... SHE'S GONE!" Alex and David both started to scream with startled expressions as all four of the boys looks around the room. The closet was empty, the bathroom empty, under the bed, under the sink, in the drawers, behind the trash bin. Nowhere to be found was the best way to describe Elle's presence in the room at that moment. Alex grabbed his room key and headed for the door "I don't like the idea of Mike being alone near the same park as that guy and missing in his female form. Lets split up, check the hotel and meet me in the lobby in ten minutes."

The group nodded as they rushed out, running around the hotel looking for Elle. After several minutes of looking the group converged on the lobby which had a few people checking out and some coming to check in. Standing away from the counter they kept their voices down as they looked at one another with worried expressions.

"I couldn't find her anywhere. How about you guys?" Alex asked as he looked to the first person to speak.

"Nothing, no one has seen her." David said shaking his head.

"Not sight or sound on the third floor." Tyler pitched in reluctantly.

"Nothing on the first floor." Zack said with his hands in his pockets.

While they talked they didn't notice a certain red head walk into the lobby with a large pair of bags with the McDonald's logo printed. She stared at the group and blinked as they seemed to be in a serious discuss before she walked toward them "Morning guys."

The group looked over, their heads turning so fast that they could have hurt themselves. Upon seeing Elle they all let out a sigh of relief knowing that the strange stalker man hadn't gotten were about to ask where she had gone when she held up the McDonald bags and smiled at them. She tossed Alex back his car keys as she had taken his car to get them breakfast before turning to head back to the room. The boys having been spared a crisis followed her in a zombie like daze at the smell of the food she brought.

After eating their breakfast their packed up their things and headed to the lobby, this time to check out and head home. Not too long after hitting the road Elle promptly fell asleep given the restless night she had thanks to Zhou constantly haunting her dreams. He kept trying to force her into his arms and declaring his love for such a woman. She shifted uncomfortably in her sleep as she began to have the same dream.

Elle jerked upright at the sound of a loud horn and Alex screaming at someone about them having sausages for brains. Rubbing her eyes she looked around and found that they had arrived back in Felding, currently only a few minutes from her home. In the back seat the trio of people squished amongst Alex's prizes, David, Tyler, and Zack all slumbered from the boredom of the drive home. She stretched in her seat and made some soft groans before yawning.

"Must have been tired huh?" Alex asked while keeping his eyes on the road.

"Yeah, bit of a restless night."

"Ah, figured that. Got something for ya." Alex pulled an unopened soda out and handed it to Elle which she took and nodded her thanks.

Looking back she saw a bag between two of the boys that looked like it belonged to a convience store. Reaching back Elle grabbed one of the many Slim Jims sitting in the bag and began to open it. Biting into the snack she leaned against the seat and looked around. She swallowed, sighed, and finally smiled "Longest weekend of my life."

Eventually the drive took them down the road leading to Mike's house, upon arriving they woke everyone up to hang out for a bit before heading to their respective homes. Walking up the lawn Elle noticed two things. One, her families mail was scattered all over the lawn. Second, the front door had either decided to take a nap on the lawn or was ripped from its hinges by something or someone. The boys also noticed this and they all ran up the lawn to check on the house, but stopped abruptly when a golden monkey jumped down from a tree and held out its arms as if to block their path. A voice called out to them as they braced themselves for anything, the voice speaking to them in slightly broken English.

"I sorry, we came here and found home like this. Been standing guard till return."

The group looked over as a man standing behind a bush as if he was lying in wait appeared. His style of dress was a dark green tangzhuang, his short hair held firm by a matching cap. The group looked form him to the monkey with cautious yet slightly panicked expressions.

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Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

McDonalds is used without consent, should the owners find me I will self-destruct as per my programming.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 6: Lake Pontchartrain(which doesn't really take place at Lake Pontchartrain)

P.S. I like Chick Fil A breakfast more for some reason....


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6:

Lake Pontchartrain

Walking up the lawn Elle noticed two things. One, her families mail was scattered all over the lawn. Second, the front door had either decided to take a nap on the lawn or was ripped from its hinges by something or someone. The boys also noticed this and they all ran up the lawn to check on the house, but stopped abruptly when a golden monkey jumped down from a tree and held out its arms as if to block their path. A voice called out to them as they braced themselves for anything, the voice speaking to them in slightly broken English.

"I sorry, we came here and found home like this. Been standing guard till return."

The group looked over as a man standing behind a bush as if he was lying in wait appeared. His style of dress was a dark green tangzhuang, his short hair held firm by a matching cap. The group looked form him to the monkey with cautious yet slightly panicked expressions.

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Alex, David, Elle, Tyler, and Zack all watched as a person who seemed to be near their age walked form around the corner of Mike's house. Upon exiting from behind a bush that hid him perfectly they saw he obviously not from around Felding and seemed to have less than average English. They turned their gaze to follow him as he came up beside the monkey that had been blocking their path. A noise made everyone turn and look at Mike's front door where a young girl came out and shook her head while holding onto the shoebox that held the labels of the broken bottles.

Elle swallowed before realized how quiet she had been and spoke up pointing at the young man as the monkey climbed onto his shoulders "Hey! What the hell do you think you're doing in my house!?"

Fei Yin shot a glance at Elle and then looked to Ren and nodded. Ren saw this and blinked before looking at Elle. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a photo which they had taken from the house and held it up, comparing Elle to the photo. He lowered the photo and stared at her for a moment before speaking "So, you son here?"

"No shit! Of course 'I son here'!" Elle realized her slip and swallowed hard as she glanced over her shoulders at the others to see if they had planned to help out or just watch. Alex stepped forward beside Elle and waved his hand to indicate the group of Chinese people "What the hell are you guys doing and what do you want?"

"Look for certain bottles but find you people instead. Bad men come for you" Ren said pointing at Elle "But now more danger if cursed. What happen spring water?"

The boys shifted anxiously at the question before Elle looked at the other guy and held a steady glare "How do you know about the water?"

Fei Yin sighed as she shook her head before speaking up, her English was better compared to Rens "Come inside and I'll explain everything, we'll not get much accomplished screaming on the front lawn. You, girl, you should pay heed to us as we're here to help you."

The group had their suspicions but it seemed these people knew more about the water. Huddling together for a second they held a group discussion before Elle seemed to visibly sigh when the group broke their huddle. The boys agreed to at least hear out what they had to say before they made their decision on weather they should call the cops on the pair.

Ren picked up the door as the others followed Fei Yin inside, the monkey among them. Ren stepped inside and leaned the door just right to make it look like normal.... slightly.

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"The water from these bottles originates from a place called Jusenkyo. This place is a cursed training ground with hundreds of springs, each with the power to curse whoever falls into one. Not just people either, any animal that falls in will be changed. I've seen a bird hit its head on one of the many bamboo poles and turn into a man once it emerged from the spring. Thanks to you saving these labels I can already tell which springs were used without having to waste time getting anyone wet." Fei Yin started as the group all sat around in Mike's living room.

"Frankly had our group not split up some years ago, we'd never have had this problem, but recently the spring water is getting stolen and shipped out in bottles much like the ones you had. Now, sad to say, we're short handed compared to the others and can't even manage to monitor cursed individuals outside of Asia."

"Wait, what group?" Elle asked before she drank from her soda.

Tyler quoted her in the form of a question, curious about another point as well "Short handed compared to the others?"

Fei Yin nodded as she knew she'd have alot of explaining to be doing today "To start with the first question first, Ren and myself belong to a group based in China called the Protections Committee. Long ago this was the only group and we acted as guardians and watchers of not only the springs but monitored who came and went, who got cursed, and so forth. But there was a slight conflict amongst our internal leaders and a split came about, thus creating three groups. The Watcher's Committee who performed our original task, save for not bothering to directly involve themselves with cursed individuals other than noting who they were when they arrived and left."

Ren came downstairs with two cups of tea and handed Fei Yin of them before sitting down. Fei Yin sipped at the beverage before continuing. "Next there was our group, the Protections Committee. We not only performed some of our original task but also sought to give cursed individuals protection from our last and most dangerous group. The Permanence Committee. They are by far the largest group, their leaders having more popularity amongst the original members, thus taking a goodly number of people into their fold."

Everyone sat intently listening to the story as they began to not like being cursed even more after what was said next "They not only had more members, but trained martial artists in their hands as well. They decided that it was better to just seal cursed individuals into their new bodies forever instead of teaching them to cope or deal with the curses. As such they deploy these people to capture, bring back, and curse them to eternally being trapped in their new bodies. The problem is, they have gained more members while we have had little luck. It's to the point that they have Branches set up. One in Europe, one in Asia, one in North America, and I believe on in Africa."

The group blinked at the size and organization the Permanence Committee seemed to show as they not only had WAY more people but more fighters too. Fei Yin proceeded to explain that each branch had a head quarters, the American Branch having theirs in L.A. Elle sighed as she leaned back in her chair "So...... what do we do?"

The group all waited for the others reply, Ren thinking hard as he looked at Fei Yin who seemed to drink from her tea as a way of saying 'Do as you wish.' Ren looked at the others and swallowed as he formulated the most basic plan that would work in their case "I think.... in time they find you all cursed and come for all you. Outnumber only option now is fight or run forever. Choice yours."

The group sat there and blinked before looking at each other. The idea of their homes being attacked or their families being in danger seemed to be weighing some of their decision. Fei Yin spoke up after lowering her cup "If you choose to fight you'll be trained. I'll have someone come to America that'll help quickly make you ready to face any challenges ahead of you. Should you choose to run, you'll not be taken under our protection and be on your own. Obviously the thought that staying would place your families in danger has occurred to you I presume. I will say this now, by fighting you'll do the same as running but only for now as to keep your loved ones from harm and to buy you time to train. The best way to help us, is to help yourselves."

The boys sat there and pondered their options, weighing them heavily in their minds as they knew whatever they choose now will have drastic effects in their lives. Elle sat conflicted, she was already a target and she didn't know weather to pick fight or flight. The others however had chosen, Alex standing as he seemed irked by the idea of harm coming to Amber or Joshua "I plan to fight, I'm not going to put my family in the crosshairs of these guys."

Alex showed his usual spur of the moment self but with more definite thought put into the choice. David and Tyler both agreed as they'd rather not be turned into their cursed forms permanently. Zack following suit as he had things he'd still like to do things as a human. Elle sighed and went with the flow, agreeing with her friends. Ren smiled as Lon-chan stirred, her place in the red recliner had put her off to the side and out of the others minds. They could have sworn they saw a small twitch that might have resembled smile on Fei Yin's face as they picked the option to fight. She stood up and nodded to the five friends "Very well. Return to your homes, pack a bag with what supplies you'd need for a very long camping trip. No cellphones, batteries, cd players, or technology of any kind. You'll have no use of it on this training trip. Gather your things, leave good byes notes with no mention of where you will go, and be back here by nightfall."

The others nodded and began to head for the door leaving Ren, Elle, and Fei Yin. Elle stood up and began to head off to pack when Ren began to stand as well. He was walking to head upstairs when Elle turned, wanting to grab something from the living room when both of them collided and fell over. Elle groaned as she reached up and rubbed the back of her head from having been fallen on. Ren stirred to get up and put his hand under him to lift himself up when an "ahem!" made him look at where his hand was.

Staring at Elle with her steady gaze and then looking at his hand to where it lay on her left breast he quickly bolted to his feet, both hands raised into the air. "I SORRY! I didn't.... I wasn't...... um....."

Elle stood up and looked at Ren, a twitch in her eye as she resisted the urge to jimmy tap him as it was obviously a mistake. The man wasn't like Alex or David, but he was damn lucky she had to get to work packing. Ren looked back at Fei Yin with a panicked expression as the girl looked at him judgingly and shook her head. The monkey seemed to do the same as it shook it's head at him.

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Mike had pack twice the amount of clothes as the others had, both male and female sets that he could wear. He also had both Gis that he owned packed for when it came time to practice. He was about to grab his PSP to have music to listen to when he remembered no technology as they wouldn't have time for it. Staring there looking at the device he pondered how long they'd really be gone. Mike finally nodded to himself and grabbed the system turning it on.

He fiddled with the settings to save as much power as possible and then went over to his computer. He plugged it into the computer with USB cable and began to empty out everything on the PSP memory disk and started to added as much music onto it as possible. Mike loved variety in his music and thought that listening to the same thing for long periods of time would be boring. With that done he plugged his PSP into its charger and began to gather the spare batteries he bought over the years he owned the PSP, his family liked to take trips and he always wanted to keep spare charged batteries on hand.

Mike smiled as he knew he was already breaking the rule Fei Yin set out for them, but he knew from experience how long camping trips can wear on the nerves a bit. Eventually Mike had everything he'd need in terms of clothing, small medical things, and other things they'd need for camping, the pack itself was not too heavy thanks to Mike's practice from going on them with his dad.

He slipped the PSP into a zip lock bag with the batteries and slipped it into his bag before heading up to the kitchen and blinking in surprise at the sight of a monkey cooking something in his kitchen. Fei Yin and Ren both looked at Mike and smiled as decide it was best not to ask and grabbed a glass from the cabinet and filled it with cold water from the tap and began to drink it. He swallowed a nice gulp of it before pointing to Fei Yin "So who was this person you were going to call to America?"

Fei Yin finished writing something on a piece of paper before folding it and speaking to Mike "She is from our village Joketsuzoku, her knowledge and skill is beyond any of our comprehension. However she will be able to properly evaluate each of you and then teach you from there. I'm certain in a no more than a month or two you'll all be in minimum fighting condition."

"A month or two..." Mike repeated as he blinked. The journey was going to be long and tiring and they were going to be training for a llooooonnnnggggg time from the sound of things. Mike almost sighed but decided not too as he would have to suck it up and push through with what was going to be happening with his life from tonight and beyond.

"Don't worry. She leader of tribe, she trusted to help those with need." Ren said as he smiled, knowing that their matriarch would help them as she was the one everyone relied on for help in dire situations when she wasn't performing something more serious in her duties. But word was she had taken a trip to Japan and opened a shop or something with her great grand-daughter.

"Just hope she isn't some dried up mummy." Mike mumbled under his breath before taking another drink. The monkey still cooking the now delicious smelling food.

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Time passed, they ate rather delicious stir fry that the Monkey had made, making Mike become stupefied at how well trained the animal was. The group scrounged up what supplies they would need or could find in the house and added them to the packs they already had. Eventually evening fell and the others returned, Alex in his car and the others on foot. When they finished placing everything in front of Mike's house that they'd need, primarily their packs as they had nothing that would be a burden to carry, they all gathered around and looked at their Chinese companions.

Ren nodded to them before hoisting his pack onto his back, the others doing the same "You leave car, we go on feet."

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Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

Playstation Portable is used without consent, should the owners find me I will buy a box of one dozen starving, crazed weasels and let them have at me.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 7: Petting Zoo Camporee

P.S. I want a monkey that can cook.....


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7:

Petting Zoo Camporee

How long had they been in the middle of no where? This was a question that rarely came into their minds as they had spent God knows how much time in the woods. Not the woods a few miles away from Mike's house either, but the woods a few states over. When they arrived they spent the first day resting from their hike, the following day Fei Yin and Ren set out to buy some things from a town that was a few miles away, returning with tools and the like. Over the course of the past few weeks, the boys began to chop down trees, rip up stumps, and various other tasks as Fei Yin stated "If you want shelter, build it. You too Ren, otherwise you can sleep under the stars."

Needless to say their days were long and hard, their nights spent passed out from exhaustion. Fei Yin oversaw the single room cabin's construction as they spent their first two weeks or so assembling the shelter. Obviously it wasn't state of the art, given the constructed wasn't with powertools and precision work, but it was built to be sturdy and last them a good long while during their training. After finishing the cabin, the boys began to assemble firewood from the left over bits of tree that weren't put into making the cabin.

Not too long after the cabin was finished they were put to work to form small training areas, but over all they hadn't learned a single move, not even a punch from their so called instructor. Fei Yin was seemingly just using them for manual labor and this was irking a few of them greatly. Without their usual vices things were starting to become a bit more irritating when it came to trying to cure their boredom when they weren't working, eating, or sleeping. Even Mike had forgotten about the PSP he'd brought with him as he'd focused more on the tasks they were given.

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David threw a large log down and panted, wiping his arm against his forehead. He was at the end of his rope in terms of putting up with the their so called training. He took a deep breath before blowing it out, his lungs having been clean of cigarette smoke for a while now. He was the first to become weary of their so called training as he spoke up when Fei Yin asked what was wrong "No more, I'm tired of being a whipping boy. You said we'd be training, yet you just have us shifting these logs around. No more."

Fei Yin shook her head at this "You'll understand why I have had you been doing all this work soon enough. Now get back to work."

"No. You can move these logs yourself." David said, seeming to stand his ground against the girl before him. Feeling that David wouldn't be swayed with words Fei Yin pulled a bracelet off her wrist and held it with the palms of her hands, fingers straight as they pointed up while she held it out in front of her. She spoke something in Chinese that made Ren quickly look at Fei Yin with surprise and hold a log up as if to shield himself as a 'just-in-case' measure.

David jerked a bit as he showed a slightly pained expression, a visible substance of some kind was being sucked from the boy and headed to Fei Yin, passing through the bracelet. The group of boys all blinked as they watched the little girl grow, her body seeming to skip a few decade and then some years as she turned into an adult. The girl was obviously older than them, but her body was what surprised them the most as it was capable of putting Mike's female form to shame. The once baggy clothes hugged her skin tightly, her shirt revealing her stomach a little as an obvious pair of objects fill the shirt a bit. The once baggy shorts now about the same length as the ones Elle had worn in Kings Dominion.

David promptly collapsed and looked like he had been through hell and back by his face and bodies seemingly crippled demeanor. The others all gathered around David as he had passed out and was laying down on the ground. Fei Yin turned away from the group towards a cluster of trees and aimed the opening of the bracelet at them and spoke in Chinese again. Ren covered his ears as a bright flash of light spend out of the bracelet and blasted into the trees.

When the dust and dirt settled the once again child like Fei Yin returned the bracelet to her wrist and turned to the others. Where the blast had gone, several trees now lay toppled over or at least what was left of them thanks to the blast. She looked at David before she walked over and began to drag him inside the cabin. "You all can carry his load now. This training is important, not just mindless labor, so don't question it again if you want to be prepared for your real training."

The others nodded and went back to work not wanting to know what she'd just done to David.

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David stirred as Fei Yin placed a wet rag on his forehead, the weakened boy starting to come to groggily. He opened his eyes slowly and glanced around seeing he was inside the cabin, his gaze settling on Fei Yin. She smiled at him as she hoped he learned a lesson about questioning his training, but knowing David the person coming from their village would beat that habit out of him. He swallowed as he licked his lips "What happened to me?"

"It was my special technique. I was trained by my master to absorb the battle aura of those ready to fight, too bad for you that you had one starting to show. That's exactly what this training is for. People in America are not as spiritual, disciplined, or open minded as people like Ren and Myself. This makes your body, mind, and spirit weak. Meaning even if you had every intent of fighting to the last, you just wouldn't have a formidable fighting spirit. Through this phsyical labour you do day in and day out, you force your spirit to endure, thus making you stronger. You and your friends may not see it, but for the weeks, if not months that we've been out here, you guys have grown far stronger than you were before. When our Elder gets here, she'll teach you how to really be formidable."

David sat up slowly and looked at Fei Yin. Strangely, what the girl had just said made sense to him and he turned. As he stared at the wall the only thing he could think to say in response was a single baffled "....Huh...."

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In some ways the trip was one that brought a few things to light about the boys that they hadn't known before. The first shocker being that Prozack was a better cook than the monkey, the reason for this being that his family apparently owned a chain of restaurants and he was now the acting owner of said franchise. He stated he should know what they serve and how it was made, thus making him skilled at cooking things that Fei Yin or Ren brought back from the town a few miles away. Tyler learned he wasn't nearly as flexible as he should be. David learned a bit about himself from Fei Yin's guidance. Alex learned to belch his ABCs backwards.

A few days had passed since the incident with David and Fei Yin, but she found that without a break they'd probably all revolt a bit like the former had done. She permitted them a few days off to rest and refresh themselves, this earned cheers from the entire group as they began to lollygag about. Lon-chan, Ren's monkey, rested in the branches of a tree above the cabin as she looked down at the others. Mike had been attempting to teach some of the others what amount of Kenpo and Aikido he knew, but for now he was alone in the middle of a clearing set aside for his self practice or short sparring matches.

Wearing one of his Gi he went through the moves as he tried to take it slow and let his muscles ease into the movements. David, Alex, Tyler, and Zack lounging about on some stumps they'd turned into seats, they sat around in front of the cabin and chatted about things they missed. The most common answer was toilets. Ren whittled away at a piece of wood under the cabin's overhang as he occasionally looked out at the others. The monkey suddenly dropped down beside the overhang and walked under it, the animal sensing a change in weather as water began to fall down en masse upon those not under the dry overhang or cabin roof.

Moments later four animals dragging wet clothes and a red haired girl wearing a Gi all came under the overhang. The red head was pulling the front of her Gi closed as she didn't want some kinda of incident. The animals shook themselves free of clinging water before turning around and sitting down. The rain had come suddenly and quickly, but most importantly, it came during their few precious days off. They all sighed as they knew they couldn't change back now either as they'd need the dry wood for meals, Elle looking at her animal buddies with a weak smile "Looks like we're going to be stuck this way for a short while."

The animals all made noises that one could only assume were groans. The cursed individuals thought about how much their days off would suck being stuck in animal form as they watched the rain fall. But they were wrong. They all took their time off to get a feel for their animal forms for the first time without worrying about having people question them about it.

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"I'll be damned, they're all cursed."

"Crap, now I owe money."

"Shouldn't have bet on something like that in the first place. It's our business to hunt down cursed individuals anyway."

Two men looked at the cabin through binoculars, the rain was bad, but not bad enough to hide the cursed individuals lounged about. A third man crawled up and the other two as they blended in with nature while watching the boys. The new man yawned as he looked at the cabin without a pair of binoculars "Anything new over there?"

The first man smiled at the third and handed him the binoculars. The third man smiled and looked over at the second after seeing the cabin "I do believe you owe me some money."

The group proceeded to retreat away from the cabin as they headed back to civilization to report their new information about the group.

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Three days had gone by and Elle was lounging under the overhang as Ren approached with Fei Yin, both of them carrying supplies. Elle waved as she continued to watch a ferret get chased by a fox, this of course chased by strange Tiger thing. An Osprey was flapping clumsily overhead as it tried to master the art of flying. Ren approached with a smile as Fei Yin proceeded past him into the cabin with the supplies she was carrying, the former of the pair speaking to Elle "Good news, our Elder should be arriving anyday if what we guess is right."

"Cool, when she shows up we can change back and start this training you guys brought us out here for." Elle said, smiling inwardly not just at the announcement, but at the fact her teaching Ren to be more fluent with his English since the trip started was paying off. His speech was less broken and smoother in its delivery.

Ren walked into the cabin with the supplies he carried and left Elle to lounge. The red head was about to yawn with something burst from the treeline and caught everyones attention. An Asian man dressed in yellow with a matching bandanna and what looked like a bamboo umbrella dashed through their clearing screaming "DAMN YOU RANMA! THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!" at the top of his lungs before disappearing into the opposite side of the clearing.

The group stared at the point where the Asian man had disappeared and blinked, not knowing what to make of the random and sudden display. They then turned to Elle who shrugged her shoulders and said "What? I didn't do anything."

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As night started to fall upon the woods, a goodly number of men dressed to move without being noticed easily stood preparing themselves for a big event. Each man made sure they were set before they headed out, splitting into three group that moved through the forest silently and swiftly. The group had one destination in mind.

A lone Cabin constructed by a group of boys, a little girl, and a monkey.

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Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

Ryoga is used without consent, should he find me I will personally wet myself.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 8: Midsummer Night's Ambush

P.S. If this is Sparta, where is Madness?


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Midsummer Night's Ambush

The group sat around a make shift table and ate their dinner. The animals all eating straight from their mess kits while the humans of the group all used utensils. They were quite content at this point in time as they were prepared to take on their future training. However little known to them, there was movement in the trees and danger lurking with intent to come down upon the group swiftly.

"I think we should probably change back after getting the dishes done. I'm sure you guys want to be human again, right?" Elle spoke as the animals nodded save for the monkey. The monkey carried its dish over to an area they had designated as the kitchen given it didn't have a wooden floor, leaving a fire pit with another make shift table. The monkey began to gather dishes and carry them to the kitchen portion of the cabin as the others all stepped outside to get some fresh air.

Outside they all sat under the edge of the over hang and looked up at the night sky, not a single cloud to block out the moon and stars. No light pollution to obstruct their view. No loud city noises to block out the sound of crickets. An Owl hooted somewhere and made the ferret of the group look around as he had almost been carried off three times now and couldn't stand a fourth. The girl of the group picked up the ferret and held it until the sound of flapping wings told them the owl had moved on. She promptly placed the small rodent on the back of the strange tiger and was about to look back up when something caught her eye.

Arching her neck she looked out into the wood and tried to find the source of whatever it was she thought she saw moving. She gave up when she assumed it was that boy from before and looked back up. Ren and Fei Yin came out of the cabin and joined the group as they all star gazed together, the night sky seeming very inviting. Elle stretched her arms above her head as she yawned, the last several weeks having been a hard and long work out by Fei Yin's standards. Elle leaned against a support beam of the overhang and leaned her head against it, the relaxation of the last few days had let them ease their aches and pains away.

Her eyes drooped a bit as she watched the night sky and wondered if her family had been attacked while she was away or it even tagging along for this training trip was the right thing to do. Questions started to bubble in the red head's brain as she sighed closed her eyes. She felt tired and straightened herself before she looked at the others "I'm kinda tired, think I'll get to bed early tonight."

Before the others could respond or Elle could go into the cabin there was a shouting from the woods as three groups of men in black burst from the brush and charged across the clearing. A quick glance would tell anyone that each group had an odd number of men, about seven in each group. A few of them brandished weapons but Fei Yin quickly charged the group with the most of them, her bracelet quickly coming to rest between her palms. She got a firm footing and began to absorb the battle aura of those charging them, their bodies quickly face vaulting to a stop as they looked like David did a few days ago.

Ren and Elle quickly dashed to Fei Yin's side, Ren seemingly more concerned about the attack than Elle. This was more likely stemming from the fact he didn't really have much training in martial arts like Fei Yin, or even the little that Elle knew. The animals of the group all dodged tackling bodies as they scrambled apart. Fei Yin's now adult body began to get into a fight with two of the men as she shouted out clearly "Split up! Run into the woods!"

The animals and few people remaining did so, as they broke away at top speed. Ren and Tyler went off in direction, Elle and Alex another, Dave and Tyler running off their own way. Left behind as per her wishes Fei Yin knocked down both men before putting her back to the cabin. She called out over her shoulder as she heard a pot clatter "You can help me anytime you know."

A Chinese girl with long almost pale hair emerged from the house in one of Elle's Gis. She didn't fill the Gi out as well as Elle did but she didn't do a bad job of it either. The girl seemed to be steaming a bit as if hot water had been poured on her or something. She came and stood beside Fei Yin and smiled "Looks like sending me along wasn't proven to be a bad choice after all, huh?"

The older of the pair scoffed before theyeach dashed at a group of the men. Some of those from the third group set out into the woods after ensuring their companions on the ground were just out cold.

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A Fox and Osprey made their way through the woods before stopping, obviously a little lost as they took off blindly. Even with the amount of time they had spent in the forest, they still didn't fully know where they were. The Osprey hopped over to a tree and chirped at the Fox, making a scratching motion at the Fox. The Fox walked over and and looked at the bird ass it kept doing the scratching motion. Not understanding the fox scrapped its paw across the dirt, writing the words.

'WTF are you wanting me to do?'

The bird followed suit and wrote in the dirt 'Mark the tree with your claw, like a marker to say how to get back.'

'You should have wrote that in the first place.' the fox responded before digging up the writing in the ground to keep anyone from finding it before he scrapped his claws across the tree and left marks in the bark. They bound off as a man burst through a bush and promptly kicked it for existing in the woods. He noticed the dig marks and the claw marks in the tree and quickly followed the tracks left by the animals that made them. It wasn't hard as there was a feather here, fox paw prints there, it lead him after them until he quietly snuck up behind another bush and peered over the top of the leaves.

A Corsac Fox was scratching at a tree, but the man noticed the lack of a bird with it and looked around. He felt something on his head and tried to look up but a sudden flapping and the feeling of talons made him let out a yell as an Osprey began to try and take off while clutching the man's head. The bird ripped off his black hood before letting it go and diving down again, clutching at the mans hair and pulling as the Fox dashed in to help and started to bite at the man's ankles, making him scream some more.

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Ren and a strange tiger with reptilian aspects on its back and tail ran through the woods before stopping, Ren panting his lungs out as they had made a mad dash and Ren was struggling to keep up with the tiger. The animal circled around and watched behind them as shifted his weight from one cloven hooved foot to the other, his feet much like a boars but with sharper ends that could do the same amount of damage as a tiger claw.

The four legged beast looked to it's companion as Ren stood up and took slow deep breaths having caught his breath a bit. His legs still ached but he could and would still run if he needed to. Before they could continue on however a man burst through the bushes and lunged through the air at both of them. Tyler quickly reacted and pounced, colliding with the man in mid air. They landed in a heap and Ren took off past the, heading back to the cabin without thinking.

Tyler and the man tussled in the dirt before Tyler swiped a clawed hoove across his chest and made the man yell out. The tiger growling at the man before clawing at his arms and chest a bit more before the man passed out and Tyler gave chase in the direction Ren went. He followed something, he couldn't tell what it was but it just screamed Ren as he followed it.

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Elle carried a ferret through the woods as she got behind a tree and leaned against it and panted, her chest moving back and forth quickly as she had run as fast as she could to get away from a man that had been chasing them. She glanced around the tree when she thought she heard him and saw nothing. She leaned her back against the tree and looked straight only to freeze.

The man had gone around the other side of the tree and was now in front of her. He quickly grabbed her and threw the red head to the ground, her grip on the ferret coming loose as the animal scurried off into a nearby bush. Elle rolled over and quickly got to her knees as she swept her leg across the ground to try and bring the man down. The man saw this and flipped over her leg and quickly kicked his foot upward. His foot connected with Elle's face and made her fall over as she let out a grunt from hitting the ground and from getting kicked. The man didn't notice the small animal that had scurried over and was now climbing the inside of his pants until it was too late and he quickly grabbed his groin and let out a blood curdling scream and fell over.

The ferret crawled out of the mans pant leg and made its way over to Elle who stirred a bit on the ground and held her head. She had been trained to fight a bit, but never really got into a real live or death kinda fight so she was rather unprepared for the boot to the head she just received. The ferret climbed up on her chest and looked at her as she opened her eyes and looked at the animal "I swear to god if you don't get off my tits I'll kill you."

The ferret jumped on her chest once before leaping off as she swatted at it. Sitting up she held her head and looked at the man who had chased them. He lay there holding his groin and whimpering in pain as she could have sworn tears were coming out of his eyes. Looking at the ferret she looked a little shocked "You didn't..... Never mind, I don't think I wanna know."

She picked up the ferret and headed back towards the cabin now that it seemed she wasn't going to followed by that guy for a while.

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Fei Yin panted as she had resumed her child form, some craters now dotted the clearing the group of boys created when they cut down trees to build their cabin. A few men were splayed across a tree here or there on the edge of the clearing, but most were up and about again. Some where on the ground from being drained by Fei Yin's technique. The other girl held a staff she'd taken from one of the attackers and was equally as tired as the girl beside her "Feifei I think we're in a bit of trouble now."

"I can see that. Also don't call me that now, ok Min?" Fei Yin was used to being called Feifei by Min ever since she'd met her years ago. Min Zhourin twirled the staff and started to shift her weight when a loud growl made everyone look over as a tiger burst through the bushes with a panting Ren close behind. The Tiger pounced upon a nearby guy as a fox and Osprey came from another direction at the group. Elle came carrying a ferret in a less dramatic entrance than the others but quickly tossed the animal at one of the men and watched it claw at his face.

The group was about to think they had a chance when the tiger slummed atop the man it pounced on, three darts with furred ends sticking out of its body. The group quickly stared at hte area the darts had come from to see a group of three men reloading their tranquilizer guns. They quickly aimed and fired as they started towards the cabin, darts hitting the osprey, fox, and ferret. Elle and Ren dashed for the cabin as Fei Yin raised her bracelet to use her technique.

Before she could though a single dart found itself in her neck and Min was collapsing as well. Seeing they couldn't help them now Elle shut the door and wedged one of their makeshift tables against it. She looked at Ren with a worried look upon her face "Block the windows or something!"

Ren nodded and began to block up one window as Elle moved to do so with the other. As she raised a chair up and started to ram it into the window a dart hit her in the arm before she blocked the window. She staggered over to a support beam and leaned against it before Ren saw her and ran over. He eased her to the ground as her eyes closed before she went limp.

Ren swallowed hard as he looked at the door and windows waiting for them to break in. A pounding and yelling in Chinese made him watch as the door lurch a bit from a few hits before new yelling that he couldn't make out made him worry a bit. The sound of pained yells made him wait for a moment before he heard nothing at all. He laid Elle on the floor of the cabin before quietly moving to the door. As he reached for the table a knock came at the door and a voice called out "Open the door and give me a hand with this mess."

Ren blinked with surprise before he nearly ripped the table away from the door and opened to see a diminutive old woman resting atop a gnarled wooden staff looking at the mess of bodies laying about, the bad men nowhere to be found. If Ren had watched, he would have seen the men been thrown through the air as if they had been launched from a cannon, the old lady of course being the cannon. Her long grey hair was probably double her bodies height given how short she was, the fox was taller than her by the looks of things.

"Ke Lun!"

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Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

Cologne(Ke Lun is supposedly the Chinese if I'm finding info on fan sites and Wiki to be right) is used without consent, should she find me I will ask to be her disciple so I can learn to poke things and make them go BOOM!

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 9: Ancient Chinese Secret, Huh?

P.S. The next arc begins in Chapter 9, The Masters Arc!

P.S.S. What would you do for a Klondike bar?


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Ancient Chinese Secret, Huh?

"Open the door and give me a hand with this mess."

Ren blinked with surprise before he nearly ripped the table away from the door and opened to see a diminutive old woman resting atop a gnarled wooden staff looking at the mess of bodies laying about, the bad men nowhere to be found. If Ren had watched, he would have seen the men been thrown through the air as if they had been launched from a cannon, the old lady of course being the cannon. Her long grey hair was probably double her bodies height given how short she was, the fox was taller than her by the looks of things.

"Ke Lun!"

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A groan came from Mike as he stirred, everyone else having come to already. Mike being the last person to be tranqed obviously would be the last to wake up. He opened his eyes and smelt something interesting in the cabin and sat up. He saw Ren, Fei Yin, and the strange girl he saw outside the cabin sitting around the table enjoying some food it seemed "Morning."

Mike looked over to see an elderly woman in the kitchen area and held up a plate and offered Mike something to eat. Mike withdrew in horror at the food upon the plate. It was a ferret that had been skinned and slow roasted. Looking at the table he saw large legs with hooved feet, a bird of some kind and a Fox hanging in the corner that had just been skinned.

Mike let out a yell before something cold came over him.

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Elle bolted upright from the cabin floor, her clothes and body wet from a combination of sweating and cold water being dumped on her. Looking around she saw Alex standing over her with a bucket and a raised eyebrow "I didn't know you were a screamer."

Alex fell over holding his groin from Elle's signature move and she sighed as the others were still alive and back in their normal forms. Further inspection made it apparent they weren't being hauled off by bad men that had just attacked them "What the hell happened? Where are the bad guys?"

"Ke Lun defeated them all! I told you she'd be here anyday!" Ren said with a laugh before yelping as the new girl in Mike's Gi pinched his arm. Ren and her talked back and forth in Chinese in what seemed to be an argument as Fei Yin handed Elle a towel. She sat on a stool beside the red head as she spoke "That monkey is the new girl, she was sent to protect Ren. Seems..... she cursed herself on purpose and let Ke Lun allow her to travel here with her future husband.'"

"Future Husband?"

Fei Yin nodded "Ren and Min were arranged to be married since birth to unite some families. Min is not from the same village but she was apart of the same Committee so they arranged it to bring a firm union among all of us."

Elle nodded as she watched the couple bicker a bit as Ren seemed angered by the fact Lon-chan had been his fiancee the entire time. Elle saw an old woman in the kitchen area as she seemed to be stir frying something and Fei Yin noticed this. She smiled while watching the old woman "That's Ke Lun, wisest and eldest among the Amazons. She saved us all before we got dragged away."

Ke Lun came and placed a large plate of food and on the table before coming back with rice. She passed out the food as everyone began to seat themselves. Ke Lun quietly dug in as did the others before everyone broke out into a surprised "T-this!? THIS IS GOOD!"

The group plowed through their food quickly as they tasted the old woman's cooking and found it to be truly pleasing to ones taste buds. Once they had finished Ke Lun sipped at a cup of tea as they all sat around the table. She finally spoke and when she did her English was much like Fei Yin's "Now then, if I recall I'm supposed to train these young men correct?"

Fei Yin nodded "Yes, I know it's more than you're used to taking on given such short notice bu-"

"I can see that. Judging by how many were there last night I'd saw training them all here would be a bad idea unless we want to be overrun again. I know a few people that owe me some favors that can help take up this load. But first I must see what each of you can do."

"See what we can do?" Tyler repeated as most of hte group didn't quiet understand. They all headed outside into light of mid day that brightened the clearing around the cabin, Ke Lun leading the way. She had everyone except Fei Yin and Min Zhourin line up so she could begin evaluating them. Looking them over she saw that most of them had decent physique but carried themselves poorly save for Elle.

Pointing her staff at Elle, Ke Lun began her evaluation "You there, have you practiced martial arts?"

"A little bit. Some Aikido and Kenpo, but not alot."

"Hmm, Practice those moves and try to combine them into a single style. Since you know how to fight more than I can say for the rest of them I know who can teach you." She motioned for Elle to move aside and the red head walked over by Min and Fei Yin. Ke Lun turned to Tyler next and pointed at him. "You boy, you're the tiger correct?"

Tyler nodded "Yes."

Ke Lun motioned towards Min "She'll teach you how to master the power your form holds."

Ke Lun pointed at Ren and shook her head "You of all people should have at least learned something other than speaking English more fluently. You always had skill with a sword back in China so your master will teach you to expand on that."

Ren moved over by his fiancee and she patted him on the back. Ke Lun saw that Prozack held a deep understanding for things and showed to have a stronger battle aura than the rest of the boys. Ke Lun smiled happily as she motioned Zack to the side. Staring at Alex and David she nodded "You two shall remain here with me, I'll teach you personally."

Fei Yin smiled at David, the smile itself seemed to be saying 'You're in for it now.'

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Mike tied his hair into a ponytail as he finished packing his bag. The group heading out into the world had cleaned themselves up a bit to look more presentable when they headed back into the world. Mike was dressed in his normal clothes and had shaven excess hair off his face except for his goatee. Ren had mostly Chinese clothing with him and was wearing a green cheongsam with a black sash around his waist. He refrained from wearing his cap today and let his hair, which had grow a bit, hang loose around his head. Zack had on some pants and a plain t-shirt much like Mike and they all headed to the door where Fei Yin had been waiting.

The group headed out into the clearing where they saw Ke Lun looking at her new students as she forced them through some standard exercises for the training she had planned. David seemed to prove more of a sloucher than Alex so the techniques in mind for them were easily sorted. Fei Yin and Ren both bowed to Ke Lun before they headed into the wilderness to hike the 25 miles or so to the nearest town.

Lon-chan had changed back into a monkey so Mike could have his Gi back. The golden monkey watched the group go as Tyler watched his brother and friend train. He was drawn from this by a bucket landing on his hand water splashing over him. Shaking his head and yowling the bucket came off as Tyler's tiger form looked up at the monkey who motioned for him to follow and took off into the wilderness.

Tyler roared and followed after the monkey as it jumped through the tree tops. The tiger disappeared into the bushes hot on the monkeys' trail. Their journey one that would not be chronicled or recalled till the day they'd have to come back to their friends.

Ke Lun had watched them take off and looked at David and Alex with smile "We have a good long while before you have to depart and meet up with your friends again. Until that time I will train you to the bone to be masters of the techniques I will bestow upon you. You there, lollygager! I'm going to have to watch you closely."

David stared at the old woman for calling him a lollygager as he hated to be called lazy despite the fact that he was. Ke Lun pointed her staff at David "You'll begin training by performing one hundred push ups..... with you index fingers. If you don't complete the task by night fall you will not eat. And trust me I will be watching and keeping count."

David looked at Ke Lun before she pointed at the ground and David began to attempt the feat given to him. He began to try and constantly stopped as it was too much strain to perform even on before he swallowed at the old woman's next comment "Just be thankful I'm letting you do this with BOTH hands."

Pointing at Alex she motioned him over to a small device set up beside the cabin that made water drip down into a bucket. The device causing only a few drops to come down at a time instead of the entire bucket full. Each drop left very little time between drips Ke Lun motioned towards it "You must pass your hands under the water without getting them wet."

Alex raised an eye brow at the feat as there was no way he could do that. Ke Lun felt this doubt and quickly moved her arm multiple times through the drops and presented her hand which was dry and obviously in need of some anti-wrinkle cream. Alex stared at her hand and then at the drops before attempting it and getting his hands wet. He wiped the water off and tried again, failing once more. Alex's stubbornness kicked in as he kept doing it even after the old lady had wandered back over to David and smacked him with her stick "I doubt you reached fifty that fast! Now you can start from one, and next time you try to pull that I'll make you start at one and have to do two hundred before nightfall!"

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Mike and the others reached a highway and followed Fei Yin as she lead them towards the nearest town. As they walked Mike fiddled with his ponytail which had grown much longer in the time they'd spent without proper grooming tools short of disposable razors. His ponytail would have stopped around his lower back it he wasn't fiddling with it. One thing Mike treasured was his hair, being the only male in his family without a receding hairline past the age of 18.

He brushed the end of his ponytail against the palm of his hand as he walked behind the others and squinted in the daylight. The group followed the road a few miles till they reached the small town. From here they all turned to Ren who dug a small envelope out of his bag and opened it. inside were folded pieces of paper with their names on them. Passing them out, the group opened them and read what had been written by Ke Lun.

"Young.... girl" Mike paused and sighed at the comment knowing that Ke Lun didn't really know any of their names yet "You're to head to Europe, a man in a airport called Dulles with help you to travel, his name is . You're to find your way to Germany and seek out a man named Jaeger."

"Young boy, you're to head to Japan and find a man in Akibahara. He will not know you're coming as he would most likely run away when I'm mentioned. Force him into training you." Zack looked at Mike who shrugged.

Fei Yin and Ren mumbled theirs out loud in Chinese before Ren look at the others "San Diego? Isn't that in California?"

The boys nodded, most of their paths heading West while one went East. Fei Yin excused herself as she talked to a nearby payphone and began making the calls to the right people to help the boys. Mike looked down the road he'd have to travel before turning back to the others "Divide and Conquer, see ya in a few months."

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Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

San Diego is used without consent, if Ron Burgundy finds me I will willing sing "Afternoon Delight"

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 10: Divide and Conquer Part 1: Highway Star

P.S. Don't stand there gawping! Like you've never seen the hand o' God before!


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Divide and Conquer Part1: Highway Star

"Divide and Conquer, see ya in a few months."

These were the words Mike spoke to Fei Yin, Zack, and Ren before he headed towards the East Coast. His journey would take him to Europe where he'd seek out his Master Jaeger in Germany.

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Down a deserted patch of highway a lone car speed. The car itself was riding the stretch of highway on its way east through northern Georgia. As it stands Mike was sitting in the passenger seat, his gaze fixed straight as the car was moving at speeds that exceeded dangerous, especially when he looked over and saw no one behind the wheel. The radio was cranked up and blaring Highway Star as the driver of the vehicle was not behind the passenger seat.

Instead he stood on the hood of the car holding an invisible mic as he sung along.

Nobody gonna take my car

Im gonna race it to the ground

Nobody gonna beat my car

Its gonna break the speed of sound

Oooh its a killing machine

Its got everything

Like a driving power big fat tyres

And everything

Mike swallowed as he looked over at the steering wheel which was tied by bandannas to the dash board to keep it from steering out of control. Looking down a brick was holding down the gas pedal as the car rocketed down the highway, its speed in the triple digits as the man on the hood sang. The man on the hood was wearing a suit, the coat open and flapping in the wind as his red tie fluttered over his shoulder.

The man leaned forward and as he placed his foot on the front bumper and hit a long note and seemed to thoroughly enjoy himself as he continued until the sang started to reach its guitar solo. Once that hit he climbed back inside the driver side window and took the brick off the gas pedal and replaced his foot as the object to feed the car its speed. Removing the bandannas he looked over at Mike with a grin, sunglasses hiding his face and his obviously growing out of a buzz cut hair looking rather wild thanks to his stunt. He jerked his head over at the hood of the car as he smiled "Why not give it a go? Fun as hell!"

Mike shook his head "No way, you'd probably swerve the car."

The man shrugged as he pushed his sunglasses up on his nose "Only a few times."

The man now in his proper place when it came to the car was Willis Bond. He was passing through Branson when he came across Mike and offered him a ride. The only thing asked in return was that Mike obey a few simple rules. Rule 1 aws smoke when he smoked or get out of the car, and Willis doesn't not pull over unless he wants too. Rule 2 You don't ask "are we there yet?" or you get out of the car. Rule 3 Never ask him to pull over in bat country.

"So where the hell we headed?"

"East... I think, then we'll turned left and head North. But you'd better be careful, we're going to have to go through North Carolina. I'm the most wanted man there so it'll be dangerous."

"How dangerous?"

"Well let me put it to you this way. Few people understand the psychology of dealing with a highway traffic cop. A normal speeder will panic and immediately pull over to the side. This is wrong. It arouses contempt in the cop heart. Make the bastard chase you. He will follow. But he won't know what to make of your blinker signal that says you are about to turn right. This is to let him know you're pulling off for a proper place to talk. It will take him a moment to realize that he's about to make a 180 degree turn at speed, but you will be ready for it. Brace for the g's, and fast heel-toe work."

Willis went on with his story and Mike simply stared at him, not wanting to question the man as he knew he was dangerous enough to himself without putting Mike's life on the line. His story took a good while as he continued on and on, while very interesting to say the least he seemed to be glancing at the sky every now and again as if to ensure something was ok in the endless blue above them. His story continued on as it started to reach its end... or at least Mike hoped.

"Then I thought how long could we maintain? I wondered. How long until one of us starts raving and jabbering at this boy? What will he think then? This same lonely desert was the last known home of the Manson family; will he make that grim connection when my attorney starts screaming about bats and huge manta rays coming down on the car? If so, well, we'll just have to cut his head off and bury him somewhere, 'cause it goes without saying that we can't turn him loose. He'd report us at once to some kind of outback Nazi law enforcement agency and they'll run us down like dogs. Jesus, did I say that? Or just think it? Was I talking? Did they hear me?"

Willis looked over his shoulder as he seemed to be watching for someone behind him as he quickly grabbed Mike by the collar "Damn it man, did they find me already?!"

"Did who find you?" Mike asked as he tried to keep his distance from the man just a bit.

"You would ask who wouldn't you? No more of that talk or I'll put the fucking leeches on you, understand?"

Willis continued his drive until he saw the 'Welcome to North Carolina' sign on the side of the road and promptly hit the breaks. He reached under his seat and pulled out what looked to be wooden box and stepped out of the car. He threw the box at the sign then hopped back into the car, taking off at high speeds.

Mike looked at him strangely as he motion behind them "What was that?"

"My attorney, dumb bastard tried to electrocute himself. I said to him 'That'll blast you right through the wall. You'll be stone dead in ten seconds. Shit, they'll make me explain things!' then he decides to live and walks into traffic to get hit by a truck. Poor bastard." Willis continued down the road a ways before tapping the panel that said he was getting low on gas.

"Damn cars and their need for fuel. Why can't they be like those damn golf shoes I wanted."

Mike didn't know what to make of that last statement, he assumed Willis was having acid flashback of somekind as he was obviously not a clean and sober man. Pulling into a town the stopped at a shoddy run down gas station and pulled up to a pump. Willis got out and tried to act like he wasn't getting the nozzle let alone getting gas. As he filled the car up and squatted by the window and watched a priest and some kids. He quickly pointed at them with what Mike assumed was panic "Jesus God almighty look at that bunch over there man! They've spotted us!"

Mike looked over and saw the group going around a corner, nothing seemingly out of the ordinary. As Willis put the nozzle back and capped his gas tank he stood with one foot in the car when a cop car pulled up behind him and a cop got out. The two stared at each other before Willis spoke "You expect me to turn myself in?"

"No Mr. Bond, I expect you to die!" The cop quickly drew his gun as Willis dove into the car and started it, Mike ducking for cover. The car speed off as the cop kept firing. Behind them the gas station exploded and Mike sat up, looking back at the fireball. Mike was shocked beyond words at the sudden display before a beaten up and slightly flaming cop car left the smoke of the former station. The cop had somehow survived and both him and the station attendant were shooting at them.

The car they were in barely managed to keep up with them as they barrel through town, sirens and gun fire drawing the attention of anyone on the street. By the time they got out of the town, the cop car stalled and died mostly from being pushed so hard after having an explosion mess it up. In fact they were luckily it didn't explode itself. Mike sighed as he thought they were clear of the danger but then it appeared.

Behind them a fleet of highway, local, and state cops appeared behind them. Helicopters rising above them all as they chased them sirens blaring. Willis saw this and looked at Mike "This calls for something drastic! Do something!"

Mike seemed to just flail about in place as he tried to speak words but wound up speaking jibberish. Willis rolled his eyes and pressed something on the cars CD player "Fine damn it! I'll do it myself."

Mike looked at the dashboard as the theme for Lupin the III began to play loudly from the sound system as Willis floored it, swearing through the traffic they came upon. The cop cars didn't even seem to car about the others cars as they rammed through them it seemed. Willis looked back and smirked as he pulled out a cigarette and lit it, quickly handing Mike one and his lighter. Mike lit up as he didn't wanna get out of the car now, needed to calm down, and had no idea what was going on.

After time had passed and a few cop cars had been rammed off the road Willis gave a hoot as he drove past a sign saying "Welcome to Virginia". The position of the sun told Mike that way too much time had passed since the chase began, but it was quite a sight to see over a few dozen cop cars screech to a halt, one officer poking his head out of his window and shaking his arm while yelling something.

Mike couldn't make it out over the song that had been playing now, the CD having been changed since the start of the chase. Mike looked at Willis before pointing back at the crowd of cop cars "What the hell was that?!"

Willis smiled at Mike as he leaned over and looked him dead in the eye "I told you, I'm the most wanted man in North Carolina."

_______________________________________________________________________

Morning came as Willis' beat up car pulled onto the sidewalk of Dulles International Airport. Willis looked around before poking Mike awake "Hey, is this a reasonable parking spot?"

Mike looked around before leaning his head out the window and looking down. He pulled his head in and groggily pointed out the window "Reasonable? It's a sidewalk. This is a sidewalk!"

Willis seemed to retract from the statement as if it was offensive and waved his hand "Well fine, if that's the way you'll be get out! Quick, like a bunny!"

Mike reached in the back seat and grabbed his bag before climbing out of the car and looking around. Willis mumbled to himself about Mike being some or the other, Mike only hearing the last parts "God damn bastard telling me what isn't reasonable. I'm a sensible man, so fuck 'im. I'll miss 'im."

After Mike was away from the car a bit Willis took off and left the drop off parking at rather dangerous speeds. Mike shook his head as he wondered what was wrong with that man. Before Mike could do anything else a person placed a hand on his shoulder firmly and said "Sir I'll need you to come with me."

Turning around Mike saw it was a security guard and swallowed as he was given a stern gaze.

_______________________________________________________________________

Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas was used without consent, should Raoul Duke find me I will advise him as his attorney on our way to Vegas.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 11: Divide and Conquer Part 2: Nihao My Coach Flight

P.S. We had two bags of grass, seventy-five pellets of mescaline, five sheets of high-powered blotter acid, a saltshaker half-full of cocaine, and a whole galaxy of multi-colored uppers, downers, screamers, laughers... Also, a quart of tequila, a quart of rum, a case of beer, a pint of raw ether, and two dozen amyls. Not that we needed all that for the trip, but once you get into locked a serious drug collection, the tendency is to push it as far as you can. The only thing that really worried me was the ether. There is nothing in the world more helpless and irresponsible and depraved than a man in the depths of an ether binge, and I knew we'd get into that rotten stuff pretty soon.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Divide and Conquer Part2: Nihao My Coach Flight

"Divide and Conquer, see ya in a few months."

These were the words Mike spoke to Fei Yin, Zack, and Ren before he headed towards the East Coast. Zack's journey would take him to Japan where he'd seek out his Master Kiyoshi in Akihabara. Fei Yin was to return to China for Committee reasons, and Ren was to go to San Diego and seek out his master, a woman named Mandy.

_______________________________________________________________________

The three travels walked on a rather parched stretch of highway as they had long since passed a sign saying "Welcome to California" after a few days of travel. Elsewhere their cohort Mike would be parting ways with a man named Willis Bond at this exact time. The early morning sunlight barely cresting over the mountains in the distance behind them. As they walked they seemed rather worn out, their hike having lead them over a few mountains and to be chased off said mountains by bears.

Zack groaned as his stomach groaned, the bear having not only worn them out but made them hungry, and tired. Not sleeping while being chased by a bear for nearly 12 hours makes you wonder how far should you get away from the bear before you break for lunch? Fei Yin wasn't visibly showing signs of fatigue or hunger, but her stomach was loud enough to let the other know she was right there with them. Ren on the other hand had just fallen over and was laying face down on the side of the road before raising his head up "Can we please stop for a moment? Might was well rest and get some food in our bodies."

The other two looked back at him in a haze before nodding, the trio setting up a small huddle on the side of the road as they broke out the mess kits, cooking pot, cooking water, and food from the last town they had passed through. After several minutes of heating, drooling, and resting, the group had full stomachs and was busy trying to clean their mess kits as they sighed with relieve. Zack had never thought that a simple meal cooked in the middle of nowhere would be one of the greatest pleasures he could hope for given recent events.

Picking up their packs they started down the road again with renewed vigor as Fei Yin took the lead. Ren yawned as Prozack walked beside him and spoke"So how long are we to be with our Masters anyway?"

Ren cleared his throat "Well Ke Lun did the math on figuring out long it'd take for us to go through our masters rather blunt but effect training styles. If anything we'd all be meeting up again sometime in late January or so, if I recall."

Zack blinked as he looked at Ren "That's several months longer than you guys made it sound!"

"Actually, I think you're the last one to hear about this. Mike knew about it, Alex didn't seem to comprehend the amount of time, David seemed to dread it, and Tyler didn't seem to be too worried about it." Fei Yin pitched in as Zack blinked, being the last one to know about something like this. Prozack sighed at this knowledge coming to light and continued on till they came to a sign and a turn off for the road.

The arrow pointing left said San Diego while the arrow pointing up said Los Angeles. Ren looked at the other two before bowing his head briefly "Good luck, lets hope the next few months treat us well."

Fei Yin returned the nod as did Zack before Ren turned and followed the road heading towards San Diego. The pair watched for a moment before they too headed down the road, their destination being L.A. Zack turned his head and watched as Ren slowly became smaller and smaller until he wasn't visible anymore. Zack swallowed as he looked down at the ground as he walked.

Things had gotten rough ever since that water came to Mike's home. The first couple of weeks of the summer had been a little bumpy thanks to their curses, but ever since they went to Kings Dominion their lives have been thrown into Chaos. Zack wondered if they'd ever go back to the way things were or if they'd be able to even find some kind of someday.

"Hey!"

Looking up Zack saw that he was dragging his butt around as Fei Yin was a good ways away. Picking up his feet he quickly caught up and walked beside her again. Zack wondered how his company was faring but was quickly drawn from his thoughts by a light tap to his forehead by Fei Yin "Stop thinking so much, you're going to wind up going crazy."

Zack nodded as he decided he could thing of the results of his actions later, right now he had to make himself capable of seeing the day where he could worry. Being turned into an Osprey wasn't exactly one of his life time goals after all.

_______________________________________________________________________

L.A.

The city of Angels. You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.... wait, wrong movie. Whatever movie they were in now, Zack and Fei stood out thanks to their packs and rather run down look. Fei Yin had Zack wait outside a minimart before she came out with bags of things, namely food, drinks, and flashlights.

As they continued on Zack began to ponder something before he turned to Fei Yin "Hey, how exactly am I going to get out of the country? I don't have a passport and I don't have the money to buy a ticket with me."

"You'll get out the same way me and Ren got into this country, you'll sneak on a plane." Fei Yin responded before opening a bag of chips and munching on them. Zack blinked as he looked at the girl, the fact that she snuck into the country illegally was news to him.

"Wait, then that means..."

"Yup, Ren and myself are illegal aliens." Fei Yin looked at him to see a look of shock and she shook her head "Honestly, with the number of illegal immigrants in your country that is constantly made public news, how can you be shocked by two chinese people sneaking in?"

_______________________________________________________________________

Time had passed, they'd reach their destination and Fei Yin had gone over how to sneak aboard a plane about ten times to ensure Zack knew how to do it by himself. Once inside the airport their paths would split as Fei Yin would have to get on a different plane. Fei Yin entered the terminal and checked the departing board and caught sight of the planes before grabbing a map of the airport gates and leaving the terminal.

After instructing him of where to go, Fei Yin began their daring break in. Fei Yin quickly broke a camera then took down two guards with what one could obviously assume was a martial art of some kind, the last guard getting her foot in his face before she used him as a spring board, jumping forward and landed on the blacktop just inside the gate. She waved for Zack and he came out carrying her pack which he promptly handed to her. Zack looked at the guards before speaking up "Was that necessary?"

Looking over Fei Yin was already making a quick jog towards the airport terminals Zack quickly scrambled after the chinese girl as he attempted to catch up "Wait for me!"

After several minutes of sneaking their way through the airport and Fei Yin knocking out a few more people that spotted them they reached the terminal that was berthing both their flights. She told Zack which plane was his before turning to find her plane "You'd better hurry. If you miss this flight you'll have to try and find another and that requires you to break in again."

Zack didn't like the thought of having to break into the airport a second time and without the help of Fei Yin so he headed off in search of his flight. Zack was sweating bullets as he dodged cameras and security personnel after they broke into airport, running across blacktop quickly to get find the right plane. Eventually he had to stop as some men were loading a plane and he looked around trying to find a way past them when he looked up and saw it.

Zack had found his way under the nose of the plane he was to board and sighed as he needed to find a way on. Before a thought could come someone spun him around and barked at him "What the hell are you doing here?! Authorized personnel only!"

Zack started to move his mouth before stammering out a sentence "W-w-w-well, I merely-Get him now!"

The man looked over his shoulder, Zack speaking as if someone was behind the man. Taking this chance he bashed the man with his pack and knocked him out cold. Looking around he saw no one had heard or seen them and began to drag the man into a corner. Zack looked out and saw the men loading the plane had left their spots, the luggage on board it seemed. Sneaking out Zack crept up into the luggage compartment and hide deep inside the plane as he waited.

"Man, it's going to suck to have to do this alone on my way back." Zack mumbled to himself.

_______________________________________________________________________

Zack sat wrapped in a blanket, leaning against some luggage containers. The plane shaking softly jostled the youth awake as he sat up and blinked. Groaning, Prozack rubbed his eyes, the flight being boring as hell and he personally felt that it was lacking in stow away servicing needs. Like a bathroom for one. He was thankful he had found a bathroom before they broke into LAX or he'd have been doing the peepee dance all over the bottom of the plane.

Leaning against the container again he looked around the dimly light cargo area, the only light coming from a flashlight Fei Yin had given him. If there was one thing Zack wished for right now, it was that stow away service included a sexy stewardess or two. He heard something above him that sounded like a vocie or a speaker. Not being able to make out what was being said he could only hope it was that they were landing soon as he began to pack up they things he'd taken out of his bag.

However he'd still have a few more hours to go as it wasn't quite time for them to land unless they wanted to do so in the middle of the ocean. Zack yawned again as he sat there staring at the ceiling above him, one question entering his mind.

"I wonder what the inflight movie was....."

_______________________________________________________________________

Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

I had a computer virus that was being a pain in the ass for a few months, for those of you reading this I apologize for the delay and rushed to complete chapters 11 and 12 so you had something to read.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 12: Divide and Conquer Part 3: San Diego means...?

P.S. I wish I had some sexy stewardess action.........


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12  
Divide and Conquer Part3: San Diego means...?

"Divide and Conquer, see ya in a few months."

These were the words Mike spoke to Fei Yin, Zack, and Ren before he headed towards the East Coast. Zack's journey would take him to Japan where he'd seek out his Master Kiyoshi in Akihabara. Fei Yin was to return to China for Committee reasons, and Ren was to go to San Diego and seek out his master, a woman named Mandy.

_______________________________________________________________________

The arrow pointing left said San Diego while the arrow pointing up said Los Angeles. Ren looked at the other two before bowing his head briefly "Good luck, lets hope the next few months treat us well."

_______________________________________________________________________

Ren had made his way towards San Diego, heading south along a road he obviously didn't know the name or number of. But what did it matter? It led to the place he needed to go so who was he to argue. Honestly he was just glad the bear on the mountain hadn't eaten him and the others.

Walking through the day he felt the sun bear down on him like a law suit or some big fat person that was sitting on him. Not just normal fat either, we're talking sumo wrestler fat here. Big enough to put Fat Bastard to shame. Ren let out a groan as he hoisted his pack up and continued on a bit more. Eventually he'd hoped to be relaxing in cool building in San Diego listening to the first tid bits of wisdom his master would bestow upon him.

Pulling out the paper he'd been given with his instructions when they left Ke Lun in the woods with Alex and David, he looked it over again. Not only did it have the instructions, but some slight directions on where to go once within San Diego. After all wandering the city to find someone named Mandy wasn't something you could do in a day or two without proper guidance.

Time passed, this transition marked by the suns movement through the sky. It was getting close to being near the time where the sun would set, but he had entered San Diego and that's the first step he needed to take. Wandering through the city, he followed the directions and wound up in a rather less than decent part of town. He saw someone and was about to approach them hoping to ask for help when he heard the person talk to themselves "This.... doesn't look like Japan."

The boy before Ren was dressed in yellow with a bandanna and a bamboo umbrella. The man quickly turned his head skyward and let out a roar of anger before dashing off "WHERE THE HELL AM I?!"

This was promptly followed by the man blaming ramen or something for him being lost as he vanished from sight. Ren swallowed as he was glad he hadn't asked the person for directions. Deciding it best to keep up his search he continued walked around the area.

_______________________________________________________________________

Hunger caused Ren's stomach to rumble as he stopped and held a hand to it. Looking around most places were closed but he saw a shop that was open across the street and smiled. Looking both ways, he crossed the street before opening the door and walknig in quietly. Hoping the place wasn't closed he saw there were other patrons felt relief in his stomach as he'd be able to get a real meal again.

"The fish wasn't even cooked! What are you trying to do poison me?"

Ren saw a large biker looking fellow leaning over the counter, a woman who looked to be at least late 20s to early 30s sat the with a ladle pointed at the man "It's called sushi, if you don't like it, pay your bill and leave."

"Oh I'll leave alright, but I ain't paying for this crap." The larger man said as he turned to leave. Ren walked up to put a stop to the man, but was cut short as the woman used her ladle to grab the mans arm and twirl him sideways past Ren and through the door. Tipping the ladle, the mans wallet fell out and into her palm.

Ren hadn't even seen her get in the mans pocket let alone how she threw him with what looked to be very little effort. The woman quickly pointed the ladle at Ren "YOU! You don't plan to cause trouble do you?!"

Ren quickly shook his head before the woman pointed at a stool by the bar, which seemed to be the only seating in the small establishment. Ren sat at the stool and the woman rested the ladle against her shoulder "So what can I get ya?"

_______________________________________________________________________

Ren finished downing the broth of his meal as he let out a satisfied sigh, having enjoyed his first real meal in quite some time. The woman sat there and watched Ren eat, the boy talking between slurps of noodles and broth. But not she could hear his story without the chance of food flying out of his mouth of him having to stop every two seconds to eat. By now most of customers had left after the rowdy one was mercilessly dealt with by the owner and the fact it was getting to be close to closing time. The owner rested her cheek on her hand, her elbow supporting her arm on the counter top "So.... you're looking for someone? Who?"

"A woman, her name is..." Ren pulled out the piece of paper and looked at it again "Mandy."

The owner almost fell over off her arm as she stared at the boy "Me? Why are you looking for me?"

"Ke Lun told me you'd train me if I said 'Your debt will be paid in full for this.' or something. Least that's what the paper says." Ren said holding out the paper which Mandy snatched up and looked over. She tilted her head for a second before handing it back. She looked away with pouting face "I can't read Chinese...."

Ren shook his head as he turned the paper around and placed it on the counter top. Pointing his finger at the first character and started to read aloud what was written for Mandy.

_Your Master will be in San Diego, California and most will not be informed of her taking you on as a pupil to prevent the chance of her fleeing. Her name is Mandy, she'll be running a restaurant. When you find her you'll need to inform her that "Her debt will be paid in full for this." _

Ren looked at Mandy and saw her giving him the evil eye. The boy swallowed and tried to move his body as far back as possible on the chair as he could to avoid possible confrontation with her ladle. The woman finally spoke as she asked him a single question "Ke Lun right?"

Ren nodded quickly as the woman sighed and pointed at the back room "Your training starts with grabbing the spare door back there. Replace the one that jerk broke on his way out then lock it. After that you can clean the dishes. Upstairs there is a spare room to the right, clean it and you can stay there. Tomorrow you wake up bright and early, you can carry my groceries from the farmers market. Understood?"

Ren nodded again, not wanting to piss the woman off. After a moment of staring at each other she raised an eyebrow "Well? What are you waiting for?"

_______________________________________________________________________

Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

California was used without consent, should Arnold find me I will order a large pepperoni pizza from him with some 9mm bullets.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 13: Unlucky for some....

P.S. I wish I could toss people with ladles.....


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Unlucky for some.....

Mike looked around the corner as he checked to make sure no one had followed him after he had snuck out of the airport. Sighing as he saw no one, he leaned against the wall and relaxed. When he had been snagged by the guy in the security uniform at Dulles he thought for sure that he was in trouble, but luckily for him the person had turned out to be the man he needed to meet. Pulling out the paper he looked at it again and noticed for the first time that the name of the man that helped him wasn't there.

"Why didn't she write it? Did she forget cause she's old or did someone interrupt her while she was trying to write this up?" Mike muttered to himself as he looked at the directions on heading to Germany. The city stated to be the location of his master was Bremen in northern Germany. Folding the paper up, he slipped it back into his bag and began to head down the streets of London.

Walking through the streets he got a map of London, England, Europe, and a decent meal. Mike tossed his trash into a bin and made his way through a crowd, some big sidewalk event happening but he didn't care about that as he had bigger things to do than buy cheaply made jewelry. The crowd seemed to be packed tightly as Mike had to force his way through like any person not wanting to be stuck behind a wall of people. He bumped into several people before he finally made his way through to the other side of the crowd and let out a sigh.

Looking to his right at the buildings everyone seemed to be crowding he saw lines of TVs broadcasting something. He couldn't make out the words going across the bottom of screen thanks to the crowd of heads, but he heard what was being said now that he had cleared the crowd.

"We go live to the scene with Thomas Kisinger. Thomas?"

"Thanks Diane. What we're getting from initial reports is thirteen people killed. Four of them being children, the eldest being no older than nine years of age. The majority of victims have been identified as family members of the two ICPO officers counted amongst the dead. All of them seemingly gunned down during this once pleasant afternoon. Interpol has taken over the case and is currently tracking down leads on this murderer."

"Do they have any suspects in the case yet Thomas?"

"Not yet Diane.... wait.... We're getting word they've got a witness who was able to render a sketch of the murderer."

A picture of the man appeared and Mike went pale as the composite sketch was his exact likeness. Turning away from the TVs and crowds Mike started to walk again, looking around for a place to try and hide quickly. Something grabbing his wrist and yanking him along made him silently freak out as he looked over and saw someone dressed in rather nice clothing with long black hair pulling him into an alley way. Whirling around the man raised something and a cold wet substance splashed over Michael.

"That's cold!" Elle yelped as she shook her head and looked up at the man with anger and suddenly recoiled in shock "Zhou!"

Zhou tossed the empty water bottle over his shoulder into the alley as he smiled "Good thing I caught you, judging by you running from a crowd near that TV store I can only assume you saw the frame up?"

"Frame up? Who's framing me? Why are you here?!" Elle started to fire off questions before Zhou raised a hand and pressed a finger to Elle's lips. The red head pulled away from his hand with a jump as Zhou sighed "The Permanence Committee obviously is framing you. They have connections in high places, high enough to have Interpol officers killed and frame your male side for it. But luckily for you, I'm here."

"And once again, why are you here?" Elle said suspicion twisting her stomach into a knot that would put fifty pretzels to shame. Zhou smiled as he reached hand past her and pressed it against the brick wall behind her and leaned closer "Well I was assigned to watch you, but I find earning a date out of you alot more fulfilling."

Elle blinked in surprise "You do realize I'm a guy right?"

"You obviously haven't looked at yourself in a mirror lately."

Looking down Elle saw a pair of mounds protruding from her chest and sighed "Listen, I've got to get to Germany, so get out of my way."

"How do you plan to accomplish that without the proper paper work? Can't swim, you'd be picked up in no time. Can't take a ferry, only way on is the ramp. Stealing a boat would make you female side wanted as well. Obviously can't drive there." Zhou stated plainly as Elle pushed him away. She had started for the street again but stopped as his words sunk in, her head turning as she locked eyes with him "Let me guess you have a plan, but it'll cost me right?"

Zhou nodded as a warm smile crossed his face. Elle was not one to block opportunities as she turned around and crossed her arms over her chest "So what was your plan?"

Zhou smiled and walked over to her, pulling something out of his pocket and handing it to her. Lifting up the object it looked like a passport, upon opening it she saw it was and looked at Zhou "A fake passport?"

"No, a real one. I've got friends in high places too. But to make it seem unsuspecting you're going to be my wife." Zhou said gently holding Elle's left hand and slipping a ring upon her ring finger. Panicking, Elle ripped her hand free of Zhou's and looked at him in a mixture of emotions that can only be described as not happy. Looking at her hand she saw a wedding ring, the twitch coming to her eye "You've got to be shitting me."

"I shit you not Mrs. Jiyan." Zhou said as he held up his left hand, a matching ring on his finger. Elle shook her head "No way, I won't be someone's wife!"

"This is your golden opportunity Elle, don't look a gift horse in the mouth. Besides I doubt you'd last long without a proper place to stay, food, water, let alone the fact you can't get a job since you're not a real citizen or on a work visa. Just grit your teeth and bare it." Zhou said as he walked up to Elle and raised her head with his hand.

"If you try to kiss me I'll punch you in the groin so hard you'll have PTSD." Elle said with a fire in her eyes, one that told Zhou that she wasn't in the mood to have the moves made on her. Zhou quickly lowered his hand as he pouted mockingly. Elle let his words sink in a second time and she nodded, not liking the idea, not wanting to do it, but what choices did she have. As much as she wanted to do this alone till she found Jaeger, she didn't speak german save for a few words she remembered from school a few years back, that would make finding him a long and rather annoying process. Removing her bag, she shoved it into Zhou's arms "You can carry this, 'hubby'."

Zhou could feel the venom dripping off the word 'hubby' as he took her bag and began to walk. Zhou smile as he walked behind her, the pair moving down the street. Elle started to look back at the man as something occurred to her "How did you know I was cursed?"

"I do believe your Chinese friend would have informed you about that already?"

"About what?"

"The Committees obviously."

"Which one do you work for?" Elle asked glancing over her shoulder ready to hit and run the minute she heard the word "'Permanence" come out of Zhou's mouth.

"I'm obviously not forcing you into a burlap sack to drag you off to be made into a girl permanently. I'm on your side."

Elle couldn't tell if he was lying or not but she needed to be careful. Zhou patted Elle on the back "But enough about that, for now lets just get on the first train to Ramsgate. I think we might be able to get tickets for one of the ferries to Ostend if we hurry."

_______________________________________________________________________

The sun had dipped far into the sky at this point, the train moving across its tracks quickly. In one of rather empty passenger cars Zhou sat reading a book as a certain red head was leaning on his shoulder fast asleep. Zhou turned a page as the announcement came over the PA that they would be arriving at Ramsgate shortly. The noise from the PA had caused the girl to stir as groan filled Zhou's ears. He smiled as he kept his eyes glued to his book "We're almost there."

Elle yawned before opening her eyes a bit and noticing how the world seemed tilted. Adjusting her gaze she saw where her head was and quickly sat upright. Rubbing her eyes, Elle began to wake herself up as best she could. The flight over to England suffered from turbulence and made for a rather rocky trip that kept Elle from getting barely any sleep. Looking out the window, the train had taken the better part of two hours already while the trip to the train station took a bit longer, this made Elle wonder if they'd make it in time.

"Can I ask you something?" Elle asked while leaning back in the chair, closing her eyes.

"No you don't look fat in those jeans." Zhou remarked jokingly as Elle swung her right arm and back handed him across the chest. The strike not being too soft, but hard enough to tell him she wanted serious answers.

"Why are you always trying to hit on me?"

"Is that..... rhetorical?" Zhou asked staring at Elle who glared at him. He chuckled as he went back to his book "Ever since I've been assigned to watch you I've listened to your conversations, interactions with your friends, lots of things. Put you in your current body, and you're a rather interesting girl. Strange, but interesting. That and you're hot in a bikini."

An elbow found its way into Zhou's ribs as Elle looked out the window and faced away from him. In the past Mike was never one to take compliments well, often taking snide remarks and rather unfriendly comments about himself more often than not. Compliments threw him off balance and sadly tend to make him act rather sheepish. This situation tends to reflect on Elle as well since they are one in the same. You can only imagine how hard it is to tell where the red on her face ended and the red of her hair began.

"I'm guessing you don't intend to tell me."

"Well..... not fully. Some of that was true, you are interesting, but the reasons are something I'll reveal to you one day."

"You make it sound like I actually married you." Elle said staring at Zhou with an expression of distaste as Zhou merely smiled.

"Well till you find Jaeger, I doubt you're going to see it as otherwise after while. Hell maybe you'll fall madly in love with me cause I'm just so damn charming, caring, an-"

"Egotistical." Elle finished as she looked out the window, the man was leaving a bad taste in her mouth. If she didn't need to use him to find Jaeger, she wouldn't be bothering with him. But this weight in Elle's chest was telling her that something she couldn't quite put her finger on. Her eyes watched the scenery fly by as she couldn't help but think there was something about Zhou.

_______________________________________________________________________

The last ferry to Ostend departed, Elle and Zhou leaning against the railing as they watched the British Isle get left behind. The red head had to admit, the passport worked. Turning around and leaning back on the railing, the sea breeze blew her ponytail about as she looked at Zhou "So, what do we do when we arrive in Belgium? It's getting to late to do anything about getting a car or bus tickets."

"I think we should find a hotel, get some dinner, head to Germany tomorrow." Zhou said looking at the red head. The woman nodded as the prospect of food and bed were rather appealing.

"Just make sure it's a room with two beds." Elle said as she didn't want to share a bed with Zhou, but the idea of sleeping on a floor didn't sound to comfortable. Zhou shook his head and raised his left hand, thumb tapping the ring on his finger.

"Has to be a queen size bed, don't wanna stand out. Besides," Zhou leaned in and wrapped an arm around Elle's shoulders and smiled at her "That would make it harder for us to have a wedding night."

Zhou fell over and held his groin, moans of pain coming from him. People that looked over would see Elle dusting her hands off before noticing she was getting stares and bent down to help Zhou up so she could drag him to another part of the ferry to avoid the gazes of others. Zhou limped, whimpering everytime something shifted uncomfortably.

A few minutes later and Zhou was sitting on a bench and groaning "I thought your friends were joking about you hitting that hard."

Elle cracked her knuckles and smiled at him evilly "Nope. Now, if you want to be able to have kids ever, I think you should watch what you proposition to me from now on."

Zhou sighed and looked away from Elle as he muttered to himself, Elle couldn't make it out but she was feeling too good about teaching him a lesson to care. Their time together would prove to be interesting to say the least.

_______________________________________________________________________

Prozack had arrived in Japan and was already in Tokyo, sitting on a ledge as he looked out over a small square, watching people go back and forth. Sighing as he realized he knew nothing about the man he was chasing, he pulled out his instructions again and looked at the paper. The same thing written, nothing new. No photo, no instructions on the back, no map, nothing. Slipping the paper back into his pack he looked out on the crowds, watching some Akihabara idol be surrounded by people with cameras. Shaking his head he scoffed "You've got to be kidding me."

"Might wanna get used to that sight. That's commonplace in Akihabara. This place is full of maniacs, there is no other city like this one. You might say it's a world. Otaku call it their holy ground. They lose themselves to their hobbies, no one bothering them at all. It's a rather nice place to be yourself. Better than our dreary everyday lives, ya know?"

Zack looked over his shoulder, a girl standing there in rather risque Gothic Lolita clothing. The girl sat down next to Zack and smiled at him as she held out her hand "Around here people call me 'Ero-chan', you must be..... Zack?"

Zack shook her hand and nodded, confused but also interested at the prospect of an appealing girl named 'Ero-chan' dressed as she was and knowing him. He cleared his throat as he tried to avoid staring at anywhere but the eyes "Yeah, most call me Prozack though. How exactly do you know me?"

"We have a mutual friend. Fei-chibi told me to keep my eyes open for a gaijin with a camping bag and to help him find Kiyoshi-san when he arrived." She said hopping off the ledge and dropping to the ground two feet below, motioning for Zack to follow her. Grabbing his bag he hopped off the ledge and walked with her as they crossed the square. Looking around Zack saw more people in costumes or people handing out fliers on the sidewalk outside buildings, all of which he kindly turned down. He looked at Ero-chan and decided it best to ease his mind "Why are you called Ero-chan?"

"Well, mostly it started out with the way I dressed but it quickly evolved around the same time I started doing a few magazines for the Otaku out there that liked Gothloli. Since I founded the company, I've produced two types of magazines, general fashion for people like myself who like Gothic Lolita style clothes, and a rather erotic magazine staring people in such clothes. I myself am a model for both magazines." Ero-chan said plainly as Zack felt his jaw seem to scrap across the ground apparently. He hadn't expected Fei Yin to be friends with someone that ran such a business. Smiling, Ero-chan patted him on the shoulder as she skipped ahead a bit "If you don't wanna call me by my nickname, you can always call me Nanami."

Zack composed himself as he followed the girl, some interesting days ahead of him as he passed an alleyway. Further down this same alley, shadows seemed to jab at each other before one fell after another. The last one standing picking something up off a body and walking into the light. Stepping onto the sidewalk, frail looking hands with bloody knuckles broke open a camera and tossed it back into the alley in pieces. An old man running one of his hands across the sleek and bald head of his as he sighed.

"Damn punks think they can disrespect me. Maybe a trip to the hospital will make them remember to pick their battles."

_______________________________________________________________________

Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

Akihabara is used without consent, should Japan find out I'll just have to release Godzilla on them again to keep them distracted.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 14: Of Fighters and Perverts

P.S. I wanna meet Ero-chan, she'd be 'fun'


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Of Fighters and Perverts

Bremen. A cold breeze cut through the city as a red haired woman pulled her over shirt closed, sitting against a short wall she waited for someone patiently. If you haven't guessed, the red head is Elle. She was wearing clothes that looked male in design, obviously something she could feel comfortable with. Sighing she glanced at a large clock resting a short ways down the street and saw the time. She shook her head and leaned back a bit, trying to relax despite the things happening in her life.

"He's late." she muttered to herself before a voice responded to her. She jumped as Zhou spoke to her "Or maybe, you're just not paying attention, dear."

Elle frowned at the man, the affectionate terms he used were so commonplace among their conversation she just ignored them most of the time. In the man's arms were sacks with groceries, obviously food filled them as they need to stock the apartment he was given with supplies for their stay. They had arrived in Bremen only a day ago and much to Elle's relief it had two bedrooms.

The place itself was close to the Schlachte where they now stood, a riverside boulevard with pubs, beer gardens, flea markets, and much more. Grabbing a bag after standing up she stared him dead in the eyes. While she didn't mind the vastly more comfortable effort he had provided in terms of finding the man supposedly going to train her, she wasn't happy with his rather relaxed way of doing it. Zhou seemingly a master of helping at maximum capacity yet also being the slowest at it as well.

"Since you're supposed to watch over me, why not help me find the guy I've been looking for? Two days and we've only searched the Schala-whatever." She stated bluntly. This in turn was given a chuckled from Zhou who turned and started walking towards their temporary home. Elle followed suite, walking beside him while carrying the bag of groceries.

"Don't worry, I'll have a buddy of mine look for him tomorrow. For now, lets go home and get something to eat."

"Please tell me we're actually going to eat some of this food, I'm rather sick of trying to order food in German and getting hung up on."

"Relax, I'll treat you to some of my own special cooking."

"You can cook?"

"Of course," Zhou smiled at Elle "I cook for myself all the time, all I'm doing now is cooking for you too."

"Better be good, I forgot to grab lunch today."

_______________________________________________________________________

Elle finished dumping the last of Zhou's poison down the drain as she glared at him. Zhou took another bite of what he'd made and shrugged "Taste's fine to me."

"When you said 'special cooking', did you mean 'short bus' special or 'this is a crime against humanity' special?" Elle remarked grumpily as she cleaned the pan he'd used to cook with and placed it over the stove, pulling things from the fridge and cupboards to make food. Grabbing an apron she donned the garment and tied it behind her back, a smile crossing Zhou's face "That looks good on you. Personally, I think you'd look better with just the apron on."

Pointing a large cutting knife at Zhou, Elle tilted her head a bit before slicing up ingredients. After a few minutes, her glare faded and she seemed to focus on the cooking. Zhou sat there staring at her from the table before getting up with his plate and dumping the last of his killer food down the disposal. Leaving his plate in the sink he turned around to the counter top that Elle was working on, her back to him.

Sliding some ingredients into the pan, they hissed upon touching the oil she had placed in it before the vegetables. Almost in a trance it seemed, she took the meat they were going to eat and sliced it into portions and placed it in the pan. Something in the back of her mind was tingling it seemed, a jolt running up her spine.

Taking a moment to break her trance she found a pair of arms were around her waist. Blinking she felt another jolt, but this time she felt something on the back of her neck. Zhou removed his lips from Elle's neck a second time, waiting to see how long it'd take for her to react in her usual fashion. However Elle was a bit stunned to process what had happened, a common side effect of being pulled out of 'the zone'.

Mike tended to perform tasks while blocking out the outside world, often being pulled out of it suddenly kinda confused him. Cooking, reading, and working with his hands, these things are what tend to slip him into the zone. This trait obviously put into play as of now, of course Elle came to after another moment.

Zhou scrambled out the front door laughing as Elle screamed at him not to come back for another 15 minutes while she cooked. Before slamming the door, a water bottle had been launched through the air and pegged Zhou in the head. Luckily it was empty and left him with a small bump and a smile as he walked to the stairs and headed down.

Reaching the first floor and walked outside and drew a small box out of his coat, pulling a cigarette from the box, he screwed it between his lips and smiled to himself before lighting it.

"Evening Zhou."

Looking over, Zhou saw a man standing with a tan overcoat on. His hair was dark, his eyes blue, the man exuded an aura of calm and seemed to be dressed rather plainly. Zhou nodded to the man before removing the cigarette from his lips "That's strange, I don't remember calling you yet Jaeger."

"You didn't have to, Fei Yin called from America before my pupil headed over. Why exactly is she staying with you anyway? From what I've found out you helped her escape England as your 'wife', mind explaining what's going on?" Jaeger asked as he placed his hands in his pockets and walked to a bench near the steps leading into Zhou's apartment building. Zhou joined him as they sat down, blowing smoke to the side as he did so.

"I see you're still at odds with our group since your departure from our ranks. I rather like this one to be honest. She's silly, shy to a degree, and very cute."

"Don't tell me you're actually breaking out of that little shy guy I used to work with."

Zhou looked away at the mention of who he used to be "I'm a regular playboy now."

"Bullshit. You're acting like a playboy. What's the deal? Using marks of the Permanence Committee to build your communication skills with your girlfriend up there. I saw that nice little date you two had this afternoon on the Schlachte."

"Where you spying on us!?" Zhou started but quickly cleared his throat "I'm just taking my time bringing her back to be changed is all."

"Sure you are. Well since you're taking your sweet time, mind holding on to her then?"

"W-what?" Zhou looked at Jaeger in surprise as his heart nearly skipped a beat. The shock more so interesting as Jaeger noted Zhou dropping his cigarette into his lap.

"I'm currently working on a project, I can't afford to train someone at the same time. Since you obviously are falling in love with her, I figure you might want some quality time together."

Zhou tried to change the subject, but the red hue on his cheeks said otherwise even in the evening sun. "What was that 'I'm here to take her off your hands' you said a moment ago.?"

"I lied. You seem to be lying her, so I lied to you. Your crotch is on fire." Jaeger said before standing up. Zhou quickly batted at the small flame that had come from his cigarette while swearing a bit. Jaeger waited until the man had finished and was looking up at him again before continuing "I'll give you three weeks. That's plenty of time for me to finish this project and come back for her. However, since she's my pupil, if you should try to run away with her, I'll tell her all about you and how you lied about not working for the Permanence Committee before taking her with me. Deal?"

Zhou sighed as he didn't want his lies coming to light yet and nodded "Deal."

"Well then, I'm off. Try not to kill her with your cooking." Jaeger said before taking off down the street. Zhou smiled before realizing how much time he had spent outside and ran back up the steps. Rushing back up the stairs, he briskly walked down the hall towards their apartment and opened the door.

Elle placed fresh plates and silverware on the table before looking over at the door. She seemed less flustered, but given her body language he could tell she was still a little peeved at him. She suddenly looked at him funny before pointing "That's just creepy."

Looking down Zhou saw the scorched hole from the his cigarette and smiled, putting up his playboy smile once more "What can I say, I've got the _hots_ for you."

Heading to his room, he caught a glimpse of the smile she had while shaking her head. Three weeks, that's a span of time long enough to make him win her heart. Male in female form or not, Elle could still be won over in Zhou's eyes.... right?

_______________________________________________________________________

Ero-chan twirled around in a new dress for Zack as she smiled at him. Zack was distracted for a short time but quickly cleared his mind of any lingering thoughts. Clearing his throat he scratched the back of his head as he spoke up "Ya know, I've been meaning to ask, where did you learn to speak English so well?"

"School.... duh."

Zack clicked his tongue briefly before changing the subject "So you're sure the guy will be there this time?"

"Yup, if I know Kiyoshi he's probably there now waiting for some idols to show up so he can attempt his next theft." Ero-chan said as Zack smiled. Having no money to spend, Ero-chan let him stay in her apartment till they got him to Kiyoshi. The search for the old man was harder than Ero-chan had predicted as it had been a few days.

Heading out, they reached the streets of Akihabara and started walking down the street. Their destination was a cosplay event with some of the more popular idols in Akihabara, including Ero-chan. Walking there, people stopped the idol for pictures and she obliged. Zack was becoming rather fascinated by the display of things, the scope being vast. Stores with cosplay costumes, figurines, computer games, almost anything you could imagine was up for sale.

It had taken longer than Zack had thought to get to their destination, mostly thanks to Ero-chan's fans. Walking through the front doors, the pair looked around. Zack for an old guy that would look completely out of place and Ero-chan for the sign in table. Ero-chan pointed to a curtained area while talking "That's the changing area, alot of people come here and change instead of coming already clothed. However since it's mostly a woman's only changing area I'll go check there first after I sign in. You should probably try walking around the floor a bit and looking for him."

Zack nodded as Ero-chan headed off to sign in to the event. The room was large and had a large stage on the far wall opposite the door. The floor between him and the stage was vast and covered a several areas with miniature stages placed around, woman and some men in costumes standing on them and posing. The people surrounding these stages could cause a person to suffer seizures from the amount of camera flashes they used.

A scream drew his attention as a woman held he skirt down, an old man running past her with a large brown bag over his shoulder and a pair of panties in his hand. The panties most likely belonged to the woman that had screamed as he made for the door. Atop his head was a bandanna, strangely it was tied with the knot under his nose and the rest of the bandanna hiding his bald head.

"Zack, Catch!" Zack looked over to see Ero-chan toss him something. Catching it he looked at what had been tossed to him and it was a pair of mens boxer shorts. Extending his arms fully he looked at the article of clothing with disgust but heard something fall over. Looking over the old man was out cold and Zack pondered what had happened before someone snatched the boxers from his hands and punched him.

Laying on his back, Zack looked up to see somebody in a gundam jumpsuit holding the boxers and marching back to the changing area. Ero-chan knelt beside Zack and looked him over. Her lips moved, but Zack couldn't make it out before the world spun itself black in his eyes.

_______________________________________________________________________

It took a moment but the old man clutched his chest through his T-shirt and seemed to writhe in pain for a bit before speaking up "Don't you dare say that woman's name around me! The horrors of remembering her are too much to bear!"

Zack and Ero-chan watched the Old man. After Zack came to, they dragged Kiyoshi back to Ero-chan's place and snapped the old pervert out of his boxer induced coma. Ero-chan sighed as she spoke up and broke Kiyoshi out of his rant about Ke Lun "Listen, all you have to do is teach Zack here and Ke-I mean, that woman will clear your debt to her."

Snapping out of it, he grasped Ero-chan's hands. A sparkle shined in his eyes as he looked at her "Do you mean that? Free of the woman by simply teaching this weakling a thing or two about my martial arts?"

Zack and Ero-chan nodded and Kiyoshi smiled a hearty laugh escaping his lips "Very well as of this day forward, you are my pupil.... What's your name again?"

Zack almost face vaulted as shook his head "Zack."

Kiyoshi nodded "Very well Zask. Your trial to becoming my student starts...."

'It's Zack.' The boy corrected mentally as he knew he was in for a rough time with the old man. Kiyoshi was standing in front of him rubbing his chin while thinking of a trial off the top of his head. Looking at Ero-chan he smiled before turning his perverted gleeful smile to his new student "You must bring back girls from a popular nightclub! Fail and I won't teach you a thing. The club is called Swift, it's a few blocks down the street."

Zack looked up at Kiyoshi, the task while difficult wouldn't be impossible. The biggest problem was language, but if he dragged Ero-chan along he'd be set. A popular idol on his arm would not only ensure entry into the club, but she could translate for him. Looking over at her, he leaned over and whispered in her ear. The girl chuckled a bit as she nodded "That honestly sounds like fun, count me in!"

Kiyoshi looked at Ero-chan, then at Zack, then back to the idol. Zack looked at Kiyoshi as the old man sat down and pulled out a porn mag and began to shift through the pages, not bothering to ask what the two had whispered about. "Ok, I'll bring woman, but even if you scare them off you have to train me."

Distracted by the mag, Kiyoshi waved his hand at them to leave "Yeah, yeah, just go and bring them back."

The pair stood up and left the old man to his magazine as they headed out the door.

_______________________________________________________________________

"I feel like an idiot." Zack sighed as he stared at himself in the mirror.

"No, you're just not used to this change is all. You look like a club goer, and you look rather enticing. Even for a Gaijin." Ero-chan chipped in, the comment not helping in Zack's mind. Staring at himself, he had Ero-chan help him pick out a new wardrobe and he dyed his hair blue. While it didn't sit well in his mind, the purple pants and black long sleeve shirt sat well on him, the blue hair being an improvement as well. Sighing again as he turned and glanced at Ero-chan, the girl smiling from ear to ear.

"No use delaying it, lets go." Zack said, the pair heading out as they began walking to the club called Swift. Turning a corner, they had left from Ero-chan's house and it would take them a bit longer to get there than it would have from Kiyoshi's place. Reaching the entrance, they saw a line going around the corner of the building and Zack looked at Ero-chan "Yeah.... Think you can get us in?"

Ero-chan nodded and grabbed Zack's hand, dragging him to the velvet rope and the rather intimidating guy with a clipboard. He looked at the pair and raised an eyebrow at them. He spoke in Japanese to which Ero-chan replied with a smile and posed. The man quickly blinked as the crowd in line pointed at Ero-chan and muttered amongst themselves. The Bouncer parted the rope and let them pass as the group started clambering loudly to Ero-chan.

Once inside Zack looked at her strangely "You're honestly that popular?"

"You have no idea. Akihabara isn't the only place my magazine targets. People do read magazines after all." She quipped while sticking her tongue out at Zack and they headed inside. Walking up to the bar, music pulsed through the air and was accompanied by rapid fire vocals in the native language of most people in the room. Ero-chan shouting to the bartender for something and was quickly given a pair of glasses with blue liquid in them.

Handing one to Zack she smiled before leaning closer to him and speaking into his ear so he could hear her clearly "Might as well enjoy ourselves a bit too right?"

_______________________________________________________________________

Laughter amongst a group of four people filled the stairs heading up a quiet building. Zack and Ero-chan having managed to snag two ladies from the club for Zack's task. The woman were actually decent when it came to speaking English and it allowed them all to enjoy conversation on their way back. How had done it exactly was a mystery even to the writer of the- I mean, a mystery to Zack. He hadn't shown to be in a numerous amount of relationships, but he did have some charm and wit about him. Opening the door, Ero-chan and the ladies entered first and Zack stood back away from the door.

Moments later a loud crash and a scream could be heard before the woman came running out of the door and rushing down the stairs. Smiling Zack walked into the room and closed the door. Kiyoshi had a potted plant broken over his head and was groaning as he lay in a hep on the ground. Ero-chan was pulling a water bottle out of the old man's fridge and took a swig from it before closing it and tossing it to Zack who did the same.

Kiyoshi rubbed his head as he sat up, brushing the dirt off as he looked up at Zack "Looks like you won't be getting taught me then kid. They ran away."

"You obviously don't remember agreeing that even if they ran, you'd still train me." Zack retorted, having figured something like this might happen.

"I agreed to no such thing!"

"You did actually, you were reading your magazine at the time." Ero-chan said as Zack tossed her the water bottle and she drank from it.

"Lies! I refuse!"

Zack stared at the old man a moment before speaking clearly "Ke-Lun."

Kiyoshi clutched his chest and writhed about as he moaned in agony "Ok! Ok! Just don't say her name!"

_______________________________________________________________________

Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

If Germany found out about this fanfic, they'd probably blitzkrieg my ass.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 15: Make Love, Not Warcraft

P.S. I won't die happy until I've seen someone's crotch catch on fire


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Make Love, Not Warcraft

David smashed his body into a boulder that had been careening toward him. Smashing into it he groaned in pain, this having been taking place for several days now since the others left. It started with finger push ups in the morning and catching boulders with his body in the afternoon. The effect had been several bruises and a problem getting out of his bed in the morning. The boulder was pulled away from him by an old woman resting in the tree next to the one he was hanging from.

His body was suspended form one of the branches and a boulder in another, the boulder was capable of being pulled back thanks to a rope tied around it. This rope of course rested in the hands of Ke Lun, the slave driver of a trainer. The old woman had been making sure the training was progress as planned, constantly instructed Dave on the what and when. She glanced down at Alex and saw him sitting next to a bonfire.

Alex was trying to pull chestnuts from the flames with his bare hands. He would reach into the flames but quickly withdraw them from the heat. This took place over and over again, his stubbornness not letting him fail at the task given to him. Looking up at the old woman he called out "How is this even possible?"

Ke Lun released her grip on the rope, letting the boulder fly at David once more as she jumped out of the tree and fell several feet before hopping over to Alex. A loud swear word could be heard before a thwack, this obviously signaling that David was once again making out with the boulder shoved through his ribs, face, arms, and legs. Ke Lun pulled back her sleeves a bit and looked at the fire "Watch closely."

Her hands were a blur as the chestnuts in the flames vanished. Holding out her hands, Alex saw the rested in her palms, steaming from the fire. Blinking, the young man was amazed at not only the speed but at the fact she was holding something that must have been extremely painful to hold for a normal person. Dropping the nuts back into the fire she nodded to Alex who looked into the fire, knowing that if the old woman could do it, he could too.

Jumping back up into the tree she had grabbed the rope on her way up and pulled the boulder away from David again "Well now Mr. Lollygagger, lets continue shall we?"

"What's the point of my blocking boulders with my body?" he groaned as he was starting to feel like passing out.

"Makes you strong, like milk only better. Now then, can't learn this technique by hanging from a tree. Try to find the weak point in this boulder as it comes at you." Ke Lun released the boulder and David swore again before a loud thwack could be heard.

_______________________________________________________________________

Alex flapped his hands a bit as he sat down around the table in the cabin with a rather beaten and sore looking David. Ke Lun was cooking up some food as the two young men groaned, their training being the toughest out of anyone so far. David probably having a cracked rib or two and Alex slowly developing burns on his hands. Ke Lun came over and placed food on the table and divided it up amongst them "Eat up, you'll have another day of training ahead of you tomorrow."

Alex and David dug in, the one thing aside from sleep that they looked forward to was Ke Lun's cooking. The asian woman proving to be an expert at making alot of things. Eating their food slow enough to prevent them from feeling sick after all their training, the rich flavor of stir fry filling their mouths. Ke Lun sipped at some tea for a bit, eating her dinner after finishing the cup.

"Feels like we've been doing this stuff forever." David groaned as he shifted his shoulder uncomfortably, Alex nodding in agreement. Ke Lun shook her head and placed her cup on the table before picking up her chopsticks. She picked a piece of meat out of her bowl and chewed it, eventually speaking up "Forever has only been a little over a week."

Pointing to a calender hanging in the kitchen area, she had marked off days to show their progression and the current date. Alex and David blinked, having never noticed it before. Alex looked at Ke Lun as she ate her dinner, nodding his head in approval a bit "Sneaky, I never event noticed that before."

"When did that get there?!" David exclaimed while shuffling slowly over to the calender and looking at it. Indeed only a little over a weeks worth of time had passed since their companions headed out to find their masters. The current date and month being the 4th of August. Alex saw the date and shook his head as he scoffed "Damn, we've been out here a while."

Ke Lun finished her meal and clapped her hands and motioned for the boys to head to bed as she gathered up the dishes. Alex and David lurched to their respective bedding and laid down, groaning while they did so. Almost exactly the moment their heads hit the pillows, the two of them fell asleep, nothing aside from Ke Lun being able to wake them at this point. Someone could have a tank, marching band, and a elephant playing hop scotch go through the room and they wouldn't even stir an inch. Of course Ke Lun is none of those.

_______________________________________________________________________

On the other side of the world and several hours later the sun was rising on Bremen. A short ways off the Schlachte was an apartment building, within one of said living quarters a red head was placing breakfast on the table and a black haired Chinese man was stumbling out of his room in night pants. He was quickly meet with a bottle of some sort that promptly smacked him in the head and knocked him over.

"Dammit Zhou, put a shirt on! breakfast is ready."

"Ya know, I like that you're cooking now, but as a dutiful wife you should wake your husband up with a good morning kiss or maybe some snuggling." Zhou said half jokingly as he stood up. He disappeared into his room and shut the door as a poorly thrown knife hit his door, the handle luckily being the thing that hit the wood instead of the sharp end as that might be a hell of a thing to explain to the landlord.

Coming out a few seconds later with a plain shirt and some blue jeans on, Zhou joined Elle at the table as they dug into omelets of some kind. Taking a bite Zhou seemed confused and looked at Elle, pointing his fork at the food "Why is there rice inside of it?"

Elle finished chewing before speaking up "It's called a rice omelet for that reason I believe."

Zhou stared at her a moment as she continued to eat before taking another bite. He shrugged and went about eating, the breakfast not being bad as one might think. They ate in silence before Elle slide her plate forward and placed her utensils on top of it, indicating she was finished. She wiped her mouth with a napkin and looked at Zhou before taking a sip of Orange juice. One question lingered on her mind and she was going to wait till after breakfast to ask it.

"Not bad. You're already on your way to becoming a good wife." he joked again as he picked up the dishes and headed to the table. Elle rolled her eyes as she wanted to inflict harm on him for saying such things. No longer dedicated to waiting she turned in her chair and looked into the kitchenette at Zhou as he washed the dishes "What are we going to do about Jaeger? You said you knew a guy."

Zhou nodded "I know a guy, that's true. I was planning to give him a call today. But then it comes to this, what do I get out of it?"

"You get my cooking and you can pay me back for that violating to my body you did the other night."

"Those were merely loving expressions of my gratitude for cooking dinner for me. So I call us even on that count."

"I don't see it that way."

"Ok, then how about for getting you to Bremen without being a fugitive in both genders?"

Elle fell silent, Zhou had hit below the belt that time. But it seemed fair in his case since she had literally hit him below the belt on the ferry a few days ago. Letting out a sigh she turned and faced away from the kitchenette and crossed her arms "Fine, what do you want for calling your guy?"

The water in the sink shut off and the last dish was placed on the strainer, the sound of it clacking against the other plates sounding throughout the room. She hadn't heard Zhou coming up behind her, this mainly being because he was purposely sneaking up on her. He quickly bent down and turned her head to face him as he was bent down with his face next to hers "I think this will suffice for now."

Elle turned white as a sheet and her body turned so stiff one could easily assume rigor mortis had set in. The feeling of surprise overcame all others as she clearly felt Zhou's lips on hers. They lingered like that long enough that her body relaxed as shock came into play and she didn't know how else to respond. Her instincts and reason being battleships afloat in her mind as an estrogen torpedo blew a hole in the USS Reason and her lips briefly pressed back before the life rafts of Reason hurled butt loads of 'Holy shit' grenades at the USS Instinct and she came to her senses.

Zhou pulled away before she could and looked at her face, a strangely warm smile on his face rather than the usually dirty one. Elle blinked at Zhou before looking away and whipping her arm forward. Not having proper aim, her snake strike missed Zhou much to his relief as he headed for the door "I'm off to get my buddies number, be back by dinner!"

The door closed as Elle sat there and pondered what the hell had just happened. She knew one thing for certain, she felt her heart racing in her chest.

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Zhou's buddy wasn't even in the country according to him. Apparently he was tending to a hooker with a heart of gold in Spain and would not be back for nearly two weeks. This news made Elle swear up a storm when Zhou went out to get groceries for dinner or went to perform some minor jobs to earn a little extra money during the day. A week had passed from the waiting and the pair had had some strange glances shared among them, primarily from Elle when Zhou entered the room. Elle enjoyed the quiet time she had to herself though, it let her accomplish things around the apartment and read up on some language books on how to speak German that Zhou bought her.

Elle sat on the couch, her knees pulled to her chest by one arm and the other laying on her bare foot, the controller for the TV loosely gripped in her her hand. She watched some people go back and forth in German before pressing a button and switching to another channel. She channel surfed through things after finishing what little there was for her to do around the small apartment. She eventually sighed, the afternoon was upon her and she was bored.

Pressing a button she found a commercial and turned the TV off. Sighing she stood up to begin preparing dinner and her grip on the remote failed and it hit the floor, the power button sending a signal to turn the TV on. Picking up the remote she pointed it at the TV to turn it off again and stopped when she saw a drama was on. The portion playing was obviously near the end of the episode and featured a bit of heavy petting, she was glued to the TV.

Having been deprived those usual routines guys go through once in a while, she felt compelled to sit back down and kept her eyes glued to the screen. A few things ran in her mind, the first and foremost being 'They air this kinda thing during the day?!' No doubt, there were kids somewhere watching this, probably a few of them being in a few of the surrounding city blocks. She found her asking herself things like 'What does that feel like?' 'How far will the drama take the scene?' 'Is this something Zhou would be into?'

Elle stopped herself as she blinked. The last question lingered in her mind like a bad aftertaste or a fart in an elevator. She pressed the power button on the remote as she shook her head of such thoughts and stood up. She headed into the kitchen and started to prepare dinner as she needed to distract herself from the strange events of the past few days.

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Zhou slide his hand along Elle's inner thigh as their lips touched, the red head seeming to writhe about underneath the man as they re-enacted a scene from the drama Elle saw a few days ago. This continued as clothes were shed and small chuckles shared about something. When Zhou leaned in and kissed Elle, he positioned his body just right and smiled at her.

Of course Elle sat up holding back a scream as she panted, the red head looking around and found she had been dreaming. Placing a hand on her forehead she felt copious amounts of sweat and leaned back, supporting herself on her arms. Elle opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling and swallowed hard, she cleared her mind with some steady breathing while focusing on the blank ceiling. Sitting up straight she ran her hands through her hair and scoffed.

"What the hell am I doing?" she muttered to herself as she lay back in her bed and rested her hands on her stomach. The dream, the TV drama, the kiss. These things stuck in her head for the past few nights, like a song someone would hear on the radio that repeats itself mentally.

"What is wrong with me?" she asked to no one as she reached up and ran a finger across her lips, her eyes lost in thought.

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Elle and Zhou walked down the Schlachte, the pair of them coming back from a bad lead on Jaeger, of course this one was made up by Zhou so it obviously was to just keep Elle with him for a week and a half more. Elle had been drawn from her stupor of her inner turmoil by the chance of finding Jaeger, but was visible pouting now that it had been bogus. She sighed and softly kicked a small stone as they walked "This sucks, I got my hopes up for nothing."

"I told you not to. Maybe you should listen next time." Zhou said patting her consolingly on the back.

"Yeah, well...... I couldn't help it, OK? Finding Jaeger is one step closer to getting home."

"Just getting home?"

"Yeah, what else could I want?" Elle asked as it didn't occur to her about finding a cure. Looking at Elle something popped into Zhou's mind and he smiled at the red head. Elle looked a little concerned as the smile was one he used when up to something. She was surprised about the question that followed however, Zhou asking "What do you want for your birthday?"

Elle had forgotten about her own birthday with all the confusion going on in her life. The Permanence Committee casing her and her friends, the old woman, the woods, sneaking to Europe. In no more than a week her birthday would come and she'd be another year older. She mouthed a few silent words of surprise before finally saying something "I honestly don't know...."

Elle seemed saddened about that. When it came to her birthday she never knew what she wanted. She always just compiled a list of random things she saw in stores that peaked her interest briefly. Zhou smiled as he had a plan hatching in his mind, a birthday for the girl to remember. He lost his smile as Elle suddenly toppled to the side while exclaiming in pain.

Her foot had stepped on the small rock from earlier, twisting the wrong way a bit and causing her to fall. Zhou reacted quickly and caught her in his arms she winced in pain a bit. Zhou looked down at the rock then to her foot before speaking "Can you put pressure on it?"

Elle shifted her leg and put her foot down abit before inhaling sharply through her teeth and pulling her foot up a bit "No, might have twisted it."

Helping her stand up he guided her to the short wall separating the water front of the boulevard and the shops, sitting her down. Zhou turned around and squatted down in front of her, his arms ready to form a seat like he was going to give a piggy back ride. Looking over his shoulder he spoke up "Hop on, I'll carry you home."

Elle shook her head and laughed nervously "No! No way, that's a little embarrassing for me. Just help me hobble home."

"It's either you hop on my back or I carry you in my arms. I won't let you hobble in pain like that."

Elle didn't like either prospect, but knew she wouldn't outrun Zhou in her current state and moved toward him. She rested against him and wrapped her arms gently around his shoulders as he clasped his hands beneath her and stood. He began to walk and jerked his body up to adjust Elle's body so she wouldn't slip. They walked in silence a bit, mostly from Elle burying her face against Zhou's shoulders to keep her face hidden from the people they passed.

Zhou looked at at the shops as they passed and saw one that looked nice, the people inside smiling and having a good time. His plan for a birthday to Elle was going to be a night out on the town to enjoy herself and help forget the troubles she was facing. The time he was given by Jaeger was going to come to an end a few days after her birthday, but to him he was happy with what he got from it.

"I'm going to take you out to a nice place on your birthday."

Elle raised her head and looked at the back of Zhou's head with a bit of surprise. She smiled and shook her head at his offer "No, it's OK. If anything, I'd rather be hanging out with my friends. That'd be the one present I want, but sadly that won't happen anytime till next year if at all."

"That wasn't going to be your present. Just your birthday dinner. I actually have something else as your present."

Elle smiled as she would decline his present and just take the dinner. She lay her head down on Zhou's shoulders and let her arms hang around him before pulling them a bit tighter "I guess dinner from a nice place won't be so bad."

Zhou chuckled softly as they made their way back to the apartment.

_______________________________________________________________________

Elle stared at what Zhou was holding before looking at the man and shaking her head "No."

"But you need to, it's one of those kinda places."

"Ok, let me rephrase that. Hell no."

"Am I going to have to put this dress on you myself?" Zhou asked, in his hands was a strapless green chiffon dress with gold embroidery that would make her absolutely stunning. It was appropriate for the restaurant, it would look good when contrasted with her red hair, and it was on sale. A plus for Zhou at least, but Elle would probably never learn that.

Elle finally gave in after Zhou smiled goofily at her and moved the dress about like it was dancing on its own. That look combined with the dress would have sent Alex into one of his fits of laughter with great ease. Going into her room with the dress she closed the door and hung it on the hook resting on the side of the door facing into her room. She grabbed the towel around her shoulders and rubbed at her hair, having stepped out of the shower prior to the scene with her dress. The days had gone by quickly and she was acting less awkward around Zhou in her mind.

The day they she had hurt her foot seeming to trigger something the back of her mind that she couldn't quite understand. However right now she was more concerned with getting ready to go. After donning the appropriate undergarments that wouldn't show up with the strapless dress she walked over to her dresser which had a small mirror on it and looked at the small bits of makeup she'd been given by Zhou. Lipstick, blush, eyeliner, and a few other things she didn't know the names of. She's applied make up before thanks to school plays and such, but she had never done it to herself.

Sighing heavily she grabbed the lipstick and eye liner and set to work. A few moments later and she looked at herself. At this point the blush wouldn't be necessary as she felt downright goofy putting on the make up and decided that those two were enough. Walking over toward her door she removed the bathrobe she was wearing and grabbed the dress from its hook, then slipping it on. She adjusted what needed adjusting and began to put her hair up. The feeling of not wearing pants was strange, almost like the time she wore a bikini in public.

Stepping out of her room after putting on some matching shoes and working with her hair, she walked into the living room and saw Zhou tying his tie. He promptly stopped and stared at the woman, almost shocked that it was the same woman that was pointing a spoon at him mere hours ago and threatening to remove his manhood for something he'd done. Taking a moment to appreciate what was before him he smiled "You look... beautiful."

Elle shifted uncomfortable at the compliment as she still wasn't used to them even with all of Zhou's words and advances on her. She glanced at the clock on the wall and finally spoke up "We should probably get going soon, you said the reservations were for 8, right?"

Zhou nodded and finished with his tie before walking to the door with Elle and holding it open for her. Before stepping out he grabbed a small box sitting in the kitchen and stuffed it in his jacket pocket. Stepping out he closed the door behind him, locking it before heading out with the red haired woman.

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Sitting in a restaurant on the Schlachte, the couple handed nodded their thanks with smiles to their waiter as he poured champagne for them. Raising his glass, Zhou motioned for Elle to do the same. Tapping the rims of their glasses together they drank, the taste resting in their mouths for a moment before vanishing. Zhou lowered his glass and smiled at Elle "Happy Birthday."

Elle gave a soft chuckle as she never imagined that Zhou would actually turn out to be decent, not some strange stalker obsessed with getting into her pants. Placing her glass back on the table, she nodded to Zhou "Thank you. I'm a little surprised though, isn't this place expensive?"

"The Committee is footing the bill. I'm allotted one expensive night per trip so long as it doesn't exceed a five figure bill on that night." Zhou said with one of his more joking smiles while browsing the menu. Elle swallowed a bit as she didn't know weather him being given that much was a joke or not, her eyes became fixed on her menu.

Glancing up Zhou noticed she was busy mentally translating the menu into English so she would know what to order. He quietly reached into his pocket and slide the small box across the table beside her glass before returning to his menu. The waiter returned shortly and they ordered their food before handing him the menus again. Zhou grabbed his glass and sipped at the wine again before licking his lips "You know, this is the first time I've ever had this type before. I kinda like it."

"What kind is it?" Elle asked as she reached for the bottle and lifted it up to see the name on it. She went bug eyed and slack jawed at the words '_Dom Pérignon_' printed on the bottle and placed it back in the ice bucket beside their table, looking at Zhou who smiled warmly while he raised his glass to her. She was about to protest to something when when he shook his head "Relax, I know it costs money to get a bottle. But I told you I was taking you to a nice place, that means there is no limit on what you want tonight. Expensive wine is a must in a place like this, especially on a birthday."

"Zhou, I don't know weather to be shocked or impressed."

"Well you haven't even opened your present yet." Zhou said motioning towards the glass on Elle's side. Seeing a small box, she glanced at Zhou a moment before lifting it up "If this is some expensive jewelry, you can take it back. I'm not a jewelry kind of person."

"Open it, you might like it."

Lifting the lid the box opened to reveal a small silver case of some kind. Lifting it up she opened it and saw two pictures inside. The top one was from when she was carried by Zhou after hurting her foot, both of them smiling. Pointing to the top photo she looked at Zhou confused.

"Some lady on the street takes pictures of the Schlachte for tourists, we walked through her shot and she caught up to me on the street. Said she'd never seen people that happy before."

Elle looked at the picture on the bottom half of the slim case and saw one from the trip to Kings Dominion, Elle and her friends all gathered together and laughing. Smiling Elle didn't know what to feel. Her and her friends together, the thing she did say she wanted for her birthday. Closing the case she smiled at Zhou "Thank you."

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Walking through the front door of their apartment, the couple giggled a bit as Zhou carried a bottle in his hand. Both of them being a little more drunk than necessary. Elle clung to Zhou as they made their way to one of the rooms. She grabbed at the bottle and took a large swig from it before letting out a breath. She leaned against Zhou as she smiled at him "Ya know, you're a schweater guy than I thoughts."

Zhou laughed at the slurring in Elle's speech before putting the bottle on the table and guiding her to a room "You're drunks, you should lies down."

Both of them laughed as they burst into Zhou's room in a giggle fest. Elle tripping on a sneaker and dragging Zhou down with her as they bounced onto his bed. They stared at each other in silence a moment before Elle moved her mouth to say something. Zhou stopped her before she could speak, kissing her full on the lips. The alcohol having its effects on her, she returned the kiss as they wormed their way up on the bed and shed their clothes.

It wasn't long before they embraced each other in a fashion that would have made someone think their wedding night had finally come.

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Stirring, Elle's eyes fluttered open as she felt strange. She held her head as she recognized the signs of a slight hangover from drinking too much. Groaning a bit, she reached her arm back to its original position and hugged the thing she was laying against, assume it was a pillow. A pillow with a heartbeat. Elle sat up a bit and saw Zhou snoozing quietly beside her in the bed as she stared in disbelief for a moment.

Opening his eyes Zhou looked at Elle who was staring down at him. Reaching up he pulled her close and kissed her. Something in the back of her mind not telling her to fight back or smash his head into the wall. No, it told her to return the show of affection. Placing a hand on his bare chest she broke away from him "Tell me..... did we do it?"

"What? Make whoopy?"

"Whoopy? You mean like fucking?" A voice called through the open door leading out of Zhou's room. Elle quickly pulled the blanket up around her body as Zhou hopped out of bed, his naked form making Elle shake her head as she was given her answer. Looking under the blanket, she too was naked and she sighed, depression and strangely enough, relief, mixed into the sigh.

Zhou slipped on his night pants and peeked out into the living room and saw a man sitting at the table, pouring a glass of the wine they'd brought home. "Dom Pérignon, very nice taste Zhou."

Closing the door behind him, Zhou walked closer to Jaeger and spoke in a hushed voice "What are you doing here? I still have time."

"I finished early. Tell your house guest to get dressed and prepare to start her training." Jaeger returned the hushed tone as to not blow the fact that they had made a deal. Nothing screams pain in the ass like a student that doesn't trust you. Jaeger finished the glass and he placed it on the table "Besides, you should know where my apartment is by now. You can visit from time to time, but don't get too comfortable hanging around there. And only come in the evenings around dinner time. From what I've seen, she's a decent cook."

Zhou swore softly and returned to the room. Voices could be heard for a short bit, moments later the red head burst from the door wrapped in only the sheet "JAEGER!?"

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Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

If Dom Pérignon found out about this fanfic, they'd find out what I'd do for a Klondike Bar *insert dramatic evil laughter*

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 16: Fire, Stone, Otaku, and Ladle

P.S. Would you like to be a pepper too?


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Fire, Stone, Otaku, and Ladle

While Elle and Zhou had been spending their past three weeks in leisure, Alex and David had been progressing in their training. in addition to their techniques, Ke Lun added on a two hour training regime of martial arts. Their training to date would make them the most prepared for what would come in the future.

Alex stared into the fire before him, chestnuts cooking at its core. He raised his hands up and pulled ins fingers close tightly, causing his knuckles to pop before he lashed out and shoved them through the fire and gripped at the chestnuts. He retracted his hands at the feeling of heat and shoved them into a bucket next to the fire. A hissing noise and the sight of smoke made him smile as he pulled his hands out and saw a chestnut in each of them.

"Oh I've got you now you nutastic bastards." Alex smirked to himself as he turned back to the fire and prepared to go again till he had all of them out of the fire and then he'd proceed to dump more in and try from square one all over again. Someone swearing loudly followed by the sound of a loud THWACK made Alex look over and see David had once more impacted face first into another boulder.

"David! Bend the knees, keep your arms straight, but remember that it's all in the hips!" Alex said after he had stood up and swung his hips a bit. David snapped at him as he attempted to flail while swinging about, still suspended from the tree "God damn it, Alex! This isn't Happy Gilmore and I'm not playing golf!"

Alex chuckled before spinning in place and going into a sitting posion that ended with him facing the fire. He resumed plucking the chestnuts out of the fire as fast as he could with catching himself on fire. David on the other had watched as the boulder was pulled away form by the shriveled monkey sitting in the tree nearby. This particular monkey wearing a gren tunic, has long silver hair, and normally carries a gnarled wooden staff and answers to the name Ke Lun.

"Pay attention lollygagger, I don't want to have to wait for your broken bones to mend so we can continue your training." Ke Lun said clearly to David who grumbled and readied himself for the next approach of the boulder. As it came at him his eyes focused over boulders surface like he was instructed in the past three weeks and he jammed his hand forward with all its might. His finger dug through the boulder without a snapping noise like he expect. His finger went in to the second knuckle before a portion of the boulder exploded in his face.

Needless to say another swear word was flung from David's arsenal as he was pelted with bits of the boulder. The boulder itself was relatively whole still save for a small crater in the side of it from David. He held his head and glared at the old woman "What in the name of Jesus titty fucking Christ was that?!"

"Bakusai Tenketsu. Although you still have a ways to go before you gain better control over it." Ke Lun replied as she pulled the boulder back up and examined the damage David had done to it. She nodded her head as she mumbled to herself and felt around the crater as if inspecting it. David did his mumbling as he rubbed sore spots across his chest and stomach from the rocks pelting him.

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Kiyoshi was laying on his side atop a concrete wall, his smiled was one that could give the Cheshire cat a run for its money and he was watching the festivities in a small back lot below. Zack finished shoving his fist against a hoodlums face and causing them to drop like a sack of bricks on the ground. Zack huffed a bit, catching his breath as he glanced around at the five other guys he was forced to take on in a street fight thanks to the man he called master.

Looking up he saw Kiyoshi clapping his hands quietly as he smirked down at his pupil. Rolling off the wall, he landed on his feet and walked up to Zack and looked at the handy work of the younger man and smiled "Not bad, could have been quicker."

"Quicker?! I beat six people down in less than three minutes!" Zack protested, having caught his breath and was looking at Kiyoshi in surprise. His raver look was still present as Ero-chan insisted upon it. While the look of blue hair wasn't natural on a person, Zack made it work somehow. Shaking his right hand a bit as if he was flinging off the pain, the master and student started to walk away from the scene as they didn't want to be caught with a bunch of knocked out people...... again.

Kiyoshi shoved one hand in his pocket while the other ran across his gleaming head. The master signed as he knew it was time to have his pupil face a real test of strength after his training. Having spent the last three weeks with Kiyoshi and before that he was going through Fei Yin's lumber moving exercise, Zack was showing definite improvement in physical strength. However Kiyoshi saw the flaw in his spiritual strength the minute they met, the style of fighting he'd been forcing Zack to use against street hoodlums and thugs being one that was meant to enhance that area.

"Despite what you think, there are people that can fight faster than you. But we'll not worry about them now. For now I want you to practice moving the truck again." Kiyoshi stated as they turned a corner and started walking down hill. Zack groaned as they walked down a rather steep and large hill, the kinda that makes sledding in winter seem awesome. Near the top of the hill was a large truck. As part of his training regime in the last week, he's been forced to try and push it with his spiritual strength. No as easy as it sounds.

Zack stood near the front but not in front of the truck and looked at it before looking at Kiyoshi "Isn't there another way than doing this stupid 'finger guard' technique you're trying to teach me?"

Kiyoshi nodded as he walked closer to Zack "There is a simpler way to test your training, shall we do that?"

Zack nodded in earnest with a smile "As long as it stops this truck pushing shit."

Kiyoshi smiled and nodded to Zack before swinging his arm to the side and hitting something between the cab and the trailer on the back of the truck. The truck lurched briefly as the old man jerked his head toward the playground at the bottom of the hill "In a few seconds teh switch I hit will fully cut the break lines and cause the truck to roll downhill to the playground. Needless to say that if the truck hits the playground, I'll no longer be your teacher. Good luck."

Zack stood with his mouth wide open as Kiyoshi jumped up on top of a nearby wall and laid down again. The truck lurched again before a loud snap could be heard followed by Zack racing down hill as the truck started to roll. An overall slew of curses and swears were yelled in Kiyoshi's general direction by Zack as he got a few feet in front of the truck and spun around, holding out both hands and bracing himself.

Normally you'd be graced with the sight of the person leaving a big red skid on the asphalt, but almost 20 hour a day training sessions with Kiyoshi and Fei Yin's regiment of training had made him slightly more than your average person. Prozack skidded with his palms placed against the front of the truck as people at the bottom of the hill started to catch sight of the truck. A few people were smart and ran for it, others staring. Halfway down the hill Zack realized pushing wasn't working and remembered the psychotic training that the old man pounded into him and he applied it to the situation.

From his perch at the top of the hill Kiyoshi yawned as he was plotting his next few days to sleep, knowing that Zack wouldn't be able to stop the truck. But the sound of skidding tires made him raise his head up a bit and look downhill at the truck as it came to a stop close to the bottom. Kiyoshi looked around before looking down at the truck and shaking his head once before staring straight ahead.

"Nahhhh...... He couldn't have."

"You son of a bitch! I didn't mean for you to just drop the truck, I meant a different training regime!" Prozack shouted with a ragged voice, his breath becoming visible in the slightly chilled air. Kiyoshi gave his student one of this 'I just pumped the cat' looks and hopped off the wall. Easily blocking the punch thrown at him by Zack as if it was nothing and wrapped his arm around his shoulder and patted him on the chest "Attaboy! You passed the physical portion of your training, time to move on. But right now we both need to lay low a bit, cops will be asking about that truck so you go hang out somewhere that is not my house and I'll see ya in a few days."

Kiyoshi took off down an alleyway as he hooped and hollered like the crazy old pervert that he was. Zack sighed deeply and began walking somewhere else other than Kiyoshi's place. Heading down the street a bit he decided to visit Ero-chan as he hadn't seen her for the past week or so.

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Zack felt something stir and opened his eyes. Looking around he saw nothing before he yanked the sheets off and saw Ero-chan who was looking up at him with a smile. Zack raised an eyebrow before shaking his head "No you cannot dye the carpet to match the drapes."

Ero-chan stifled a laugh as she crawled up up the bed and snuggled up close to Zack, they obviously naked bodies sprawled on the bed. Zack realized something and looked around before sitting up. He glanced back at Ero-chan who was grabbing the sheets, most of them having fallen on the floor. Zack lay back down and crossed his arms behind his head as he looked at the girl that was now covering them both with the sheets.

"Where'd the other girl go?"

"She said she had work, so she left a short while ago. She left her phone number in case we wanted to 'hang out' with her again."

"Ah, and what did you say?"

"You owe me a pair of panties."

Zack and Ero-chan laughed as they shifted about in the bed while pulling the sheets over their heads. Needless to say, what followed involved alot of moaning, a noisy mattress, and a squeaky toy...... don't ask.

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"This is the last time we'll warn you, leave now."

The sound of a bottle breaking caught the attention of everyone in the restaurant as a group of bikers glared at the woman and young asian man behind the counter. The one in front was holding the broken bottle in his hand and pointing it at the woman as he gritted his teeth "Don't you tell us waht to do bitch, I heard from one of my boys that you kicked him out when he refused to pay for the horrible service here. So I think you owe him an apology and you should give us the money for that shitty lunch you took."

Mandy glanced at Ren and nodded her head as the younger man walked toward the back room. Another bottle broke, this one hitting the wall next to the door leading into the back room. Ren didn't stop as he reached the back room and reached inside. He retrieved a broom and began to walked through the gap leading out from behind the bar. The bikers all laughed as the leader pointed his bottle at Ren "What you going to do? Sweep us out of here?"

The group laughed again as Ren stopped. Placing the end of the broom on the floor he put his foot on top of it and twisted it until the broom handle was in his hands and the broom head was still on the floor. Pushing it aside he raised it up and walked closer to the bikers "You should probably leave now, of you'll find out how your buddy was kicked out of here."

The bikers laughed again as their leader rushed toward Ren with the bottle and pulled it back, aiming to stab him with it. Ren twirled the staff and jammed one end forward, into the opening in the broken bottle and pushed against it. The opposing pressure further broke the bottle and made it cut into the mans hand as he stopped and held his hand. Ren pulled the handle back and twirled it around, the other end of it jamming forward into his shoulder and knocked him backward. The biker fell on the floor and groaned before pointing his bloody hand at Ren and shooting "Get that little slant!"

The bikers all charged at Ren who pulled back on the extended end and ran forward at his assailants. Swinging the broom handle, he bashed it into the knee cap of the first biker on his left and shifted the other end between the first on his right. Pulling the end back and up, he swept the bikers leg from under him in mid run. This resulted in a pain cry as he had caught be biker in the right way to smash his head against a table on his way down.

Twirling the handle he slammed the flat end that screwed into the broom handle on the ground and lifted himself up, throwing his legs up and nailing the other two bikers with his feet hitting them in the head. Pulling his body down and landing on his feet, he raised the staff and pointed it at the leader "Leave now."

The bikers glared at Ren as they all crawled to the door and made their way out into the streets. The leader eventually stormed back in, a small black object in his hand. Ren swung his arm up as the biker raised his hand and pointed a gun at Ren. of course he immediately dropped the gun when a knife dug its way into the bottom of his palm and traveled into his wrist a bit. Ren dropped the broom handle and raised his hands above his head before swinging down, multiple chains shooting out from his sleeves and wrapping around the biker.

Mandy clapped her hands as she saw that Ren was getting better at hiding weapons in his clothing. She walked closer to the corner of the bar and leaned against it as she stared at the biker "You should leave and never come back. Otherwise we might call the cops on you."

The chains loosened and fell around the biker as he took off out the door and the rumble of bikes starting up could be heard. They took off and Ren began gathering up the chains as the patrons of the restaurant clapped their hands at the display. Ren smiled nervously and bowed his head a bit at the applause before grabbing the gun, his chains, and the broom parts and going into the back room. Mandy quickly followed him and patted him on the back as he placed the weapons on a big table "Not bad, I barely heard the chains jingle in your clothes today, that and you showed some better handling over a staff than you did when you first showed up. My master would have loved to train you I think. Last person she trained was some blind as a bat kid named Musu or something."

"I still have a ways to go though, it's only the end of August."

"Don't worry about the time, just make sure you getting your training right. You need to stay focused and not rush it. That could get you on the losing side of a fight real quick."

Ren nodded as he was suddenly grabbed by the shoulders, spun around and pushed toward teh sink. He blinked as he saw a stack of dishes and sighed, knowing what Mandy wanted from him as he rolled up his sleeves and grabbed an apron before getting back to washing dishes. He grumbled to himself as he picked up a plate covered in dried gravy "Why can't she just by an automatic dishwasher?"

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Author Note

Sorry about the delay, recently became unemployed and I've been lazy about writing for a bit. I'll try to get the next chapter out faster.

Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission. Mousse(Musu) belongs to Rumiko, and thankfully is only mentioned.

If bikers found out about this story, I'd probably be forced to strip to Menudo......

The characters Mike, Alex, Amber, Baby Joshua, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 17: Creeping Darkness

P.S. What did they need a squeaky toy for?


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Creeping Darkness

Nestled within Los Angeles Harbor was a ship being unloaded by men dressed rather casually in what looked like Hawaiian shirts. The ship itself was 90' Pershing 90 yacht, should one tour the inside of one they'd find it to be a luxurious craft. But being as these people weren't your average easy going yacht owners, the guest bedrooms had been turned general sleeping quarters with multiple cots in a bunk bed fashion. Of course the rest of the ship was altered to make it light enough to move with the load it carried as well. A horrid way to destroy such a lovely vessel, but these people could obviously buy another two or three if they wanted.

A man smoking a pipe will resting upon a crate smiled as his people offloaded the last of the crates from the boat and began shoving them into the back of a large truck. His beady eyes watching the men work as he blew smoke into the air. Looking down beside him on the crate was a bottle of water with Chinese on the label, his free hand lifting it up as he read the label outloud to himself "Natural spring water of Jusenkyo... Can't believe how easy it was to fool people enough to let us use it like this."

Chuckling the man set it down and continued to watch his people load the large crates filled with the cursed water as he smiled and sucked on his pipe some more. A man in white suit approached the one resting upon the crate, a cigar in one hand and a thick envelope in the other. Tossing the envelope, the asian man resting on the crate caught it without even glancing in its direction "Many thanks, here's hoping your plan works. If it does, that means more business for us."

The man in the white suit smiled before reaching up and brushing his blonde hair away from his face. His blue eyes sparkled despite it being the middle of the night, his lips moving as he spoke "Lets hope so. Thanks to your little diversionary tactic, the Committees are all wrapped up around that group of young men. They'll never see what we do next. I'll send word if we need more shipped in."

"You don't think what you have will be enough? You could probably make a city like New York crawl with people splashed by this stuff."

"That's not our goal. We intend to use this water to help America overcome its next hurdle in history."

The asian man guffawed at what was just said, finally coming down from his laugh he wiped a tear from his eye and looked at the blonde man "Help America? This water isn't something that can be used to help anybody."

"You sound like an pessimist. Also, what makes you say that, Pang?"

Rain drops began to slowly descend upon the harbor as Pang put his feet on the ground and got off the crate. The rain grew heavy as a man in a black suit came upon behind the blonde and held an umbrella above both of them as Pang got soaked to the bone. His clothes collapsed in a heap, in his place was a red neck crane. The large bird turning and staring at the blonde before bowing its head and grabbing the mouth piece of the pipe and straightening itself.

The blonde man smirked in amusement before turning and walking away, his assistant sticking to his side and protecting him and his extremely expensive suit from the rain.

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Dark eyes darted over the photos of Elle and her friends at Kings Dominion and a few of them in the woods. They then darted to more recent photos that had time stamps showing a large time difference. The most recent ones being from a few days ago, making today October 23rd. They had lost all but two of the boys for nearly three months after they vanished from the woods. The man lifted up a picture of Zhou and Elle, a stern gazing that could almost burn Zhou out of the picture before he put it back down on the table.

"They're training. How exactly did that happen? And would someone care to explain how all but TWO escaped our observation groups for nearly three months?!" The dark man slammed his hand down on the table, his dark eyes shifting to the people assembled before him. The Permanence Committee members before him all remained silent before a voice spoke out "It was the old woman."

All eyes turned to the asian man with an eyepatch and a cigarette between his lips. Stepping forward, he showed he was dressed in a simple boilersuit and had a rather relaxed posture despite the other mans obvious irritation. He pulled the unlit cigarette from his mouth while approaching the table and pointed to a picture "That woman there is Ke Lun. She's the amazon leader, same tribe I was apart of."

The dark eyed man glanced up at the man and almost growled "And you didn't mention this sooner? What compelled such irresponsible action, Bao Fu?"

Bao Fu shrugged his shoulders a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth "No one asked? Besides, I wasn't here till about a month and a half ago. Can't expect me to catch up on your operation all at once, Yang Shui."

Yang's growl crept out and Bao Fu walked back over to where the others were. Yang hated having his full name addressed to him by an underling, it showed disrespect in his mind. He let it slide for now as he had bigger problems on his hands, his dark eyes shifting back to the photos. He spotted a person seemingly instructing each person and called out again "What do we know about these 'Masters' they're learning from?"

"They could put our colelctive asses into the ground in a few minutes." a japanese boy said blatantly before getting smacked on the back of his head by a girl that looked almost exactly like him. He rubbed his head as he grumbled and the girl spoke up "Excuse Isagami, his brain seems to have lost the filter to his mouth along with his manners."

Yang stared at Isagami and his twin sister Kanogami for a moment before trailing over to an older gentlemen standing behind them "Xiua, any of these people recognizable?"

Brushing past the twins, Xiua approached the table and glanced at the pictures before pointing to two of them "The first one here with his blue haired boy is Kiyoshi. Him and another old master in Furinkan are very powerful. Kiyoshi specializes in channeling his chi while the other seemed to be a master of his own mixed-martial art style. Both are extremely perverted and not to be underestimated."

Pointing his finger to a picture with Elle punching Jaeger in the face while he seemed to be unphased and was holding up a box that was cut off by the edge of the picture, half a tampon could be identified on the box along with the red color on Elle's face. Xiua shook his head before speaking again "This is Jaeger. He was your predecessor, he left due to a 'conflict' of morals among the groups. Mostly concerning the induction of our young friend, Jigen."

Yang crossed his arms before glancing over at a newspaper on the corner of the table. A Chicago newspaper had a front page picture of what looked like a destroyed city block, the headline reading _Possible terrorist bombimg?_ and he shook his head. Xiua walked back to the group as Yang sat down in a chair and rubbed his temples, the young group of people they'd been tracking having become the first group to give the Permanence Committee any real problems. Looking up he sighed "I want Jigen to come back to LA. Xiua, head to Japan and wait for the right time to snatch the blue haired boy. Isagami and Kanogami, head to the woods and wait till the old woman heads to town for supplies then capture those two. Bao Fu, head to San Diego and bring me the boy from the Protections Committee. And leave Bertha behind, you won't need it in public.

"What?! But.... but......b-b-but I need her! I have to use her!"

"No, make do with all your other toys."

Turning and pointing at unnamed people he issued extra orders "I want you to go to Europe and remind Zhou who he works for. I want you to find out who is responsible for these bottles we keep finding. There's way to many people getting cursed for this to be a coincidence."

A man approached and placed a small scrap of paper on the table next to Yang Shui and whispered into his ear before heading out. Yang glanced at the paper before leaning back in his chair "Jigen accomplished his mission and is having his target shipped back here in a medical ambulance. I'm going to have to talk to him about his methods. And someone, find that damn tiger! All we got are those bigfoot style pictures of him and a golden monkey, I want that thing brought here with the rest of them! GO!"

Everyone left as Yang stayed in his seat, rubbing his temples. Having been annoyed at the sheer amount of running around his group was doing. The number of cursed individuals seemed to be increasing faster than they could track them down thanks to the spread of bottles filled with cused water. Add on to that the group of young men that were planning to fight back against any attempts to be captured just made his head hurt.

Closing his eyes he took slow, deep breaths to try and clear his head. Opening his eyes and looked at the table of photos, an abrupt change being seen in their stances, the way they looked, they almost looked like they'd grown. Yang grunted as he glared at a picture of Elle "This is getting annoying. I think a Christmas surprise is in order for you."

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Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

Short chapter, but I don't care! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! This is the halfway point of Jusenkyo Knights!

The characters Mike, Alex, Amber, Baby Joshua, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 18: Evergreen Birdcage

P.S. I love the little Tacos, I love them gooooooddddd


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Evergreen Birdcage

Marking a large X over the 24th day in October, Elle replaced the cap on the marker and released it, the marker falling a few inches before the string tied to its end caught it. Turning around Elle stretched her arms over her head and groaned a bit as she started to wake up while heading into the kitchen. She began shuffling about and taking things out of cupboards and the fridge before placing a pan on the stove and preparing to start breakfast. A voice made her turn groggily toward Jaeger who just walked in "Scrambled eggs this time, bacon, toast, and some coffee."

He shuffled off toward the bathroom as Elle nodded her head, having not only been his pupil but more or less his maid/cook/servant. She grumbled to herself a bit as she knew she had a long day ahead of her and started cracking eggs. She had tossed the last shell in the trash when hands covered her eyes. The feel of soft smooth skin told her who it was, that and the person was obviously leaning against Elle and the feeling was a familiar one after a few weeks. A soft voice filled the small kitchen as Elle grabbed a fork and began beating the eggs "Guess who~?"

"Morning Janis." Elle said with a lack of any sort of emotion short of sleepiness in her voice. The other girl came around beside the redhead and leaned on the counter, her short blonde hair would have made anyone think she was a very girl boy at first glance, her lack of bust, her less than girly physic, plus a few other things. Janis watched as Elle began slaving over the stove before speaking up "Sorry you have to be the one that cooks, I tend to burn my cooking or make it underdone."

"It's alright Janis, wouldn't be the first person to have me cook like this for them." Elle pitched in. About two months or so ago Elle had moved into the guest bedroom at Jaegers place and started training, along with doing household chores and such. Janis hadn't a real liking toward Elle then, but saving someones life tends to change their minds about you. That and being 'interesting' as the slightly younger girl puts it. Janis had been informed on Elle's situation, showed what Mike looks like, and many other things.

"Janis, get ready for work. You can't afford to be late again." Jaeger said, coming out of the bathroom and drying his hair with a towel. He walked into the kitchen and saw eggs and bacon get slipped onto a plate with a piece of toast that was buttered. A cup of coffee being held out to him. Taking it he nodded to Elle and grabbed his plate. Janis ran into the bathroom and the sound of running water could be heard.

"Elle, take the day to head into the streets. I want you to put on magic shows with what I've taught you. You can't return until 3 this afternoon." Jaeger said after sipping at his coffee. I looked at him confused as he didn't even look up from his plate, answering before eating a piece of bacon "I'm heading to meet a few old friends to get your name cleared. They'll find 'new evidence' that leads them to believe you are not involved in the murders."

Elle nodded, a feeling of relief passing into her body about her name getting cleared. A running noise made her watch as Janis ran to her room while wrapped only in a towel. Jaegers bit into his eggs before adding some pepper and taking another bit. Elle went about making a breakfast sandwich of some kind and wrapped it in a paper towel before placing it on the table. Janis came out of her room in a set of nice work clothes for restaurant server and grabbed the wrapped up sandwich while making for the door "Thanks Elle! Bye Uncle Jaeger!"

The door closed and silence returned before the sound of Elle cooking her breakfast began to fill the room. Clattering dishes and footsteps told her that Jaeger had finished and was heading to his room to dress. Elle went about her morning of eating breakfast, showering, slipping on the floor and falling over on her way back to her room, the usual things in the morning for her. She was just happy that Jaeger or Janis hadn't seen that as she grabbed her towel and wrapped it around her body again, taking baby steps back to her room to keep from slipping again.

After dressing, she filled her pockets with the necessary things; keys, passport, money, cigarettes, PSP she'd remember was packed away for the trip, and a butterfly knife. The knife was a memento of the time Mike saved Janis from some street punks that had obvious intentions toward a girl alone at night on her way home. Luckily Elle had been sent to meet her and had some hot chocolate to change back with. Nothing like the sight of a wanted murderer and a few aikido moves makes dumb punks run away faster.

Stepping out of her room, dressed for the day, Elle noticed Jaeger wrapping a scarf around his neck as Elle was pulling her trench coat on. He nodded to her before stepping out the door and closing it behind him. Elle rubbed the last bit of grogginess from her eyes before reaching the door and double checking her person and ensuring she had everything before opening the door. Closing it behind her, she put the key in the knob and locked it.

_______________________________________________________________________

Traveling about Bremen, Elle put on several magic shows. Of course, there was a purpose to this, and that was practice against others. Jaeger wasn't like the other Masters picked out of the long list in Ke Lun's head, he specialized in illusions. Elle had been forced to practice her Aikido and Kenpo skills, centering herself with meditation, then taught Jaeger's arts.

Having only truly gotten the basics of the techniques down, Elle was still in need of some fine tuning. The sound of people clapping and the sight of money being dropped into a small cup near her feet made Elle smile and bow. Bending down, she picked up the cup and poured the change into her hand before slipping it into her pants pocket. She watched the crowd disperse before she turned to start walking to another place to perform.

"Nice performance, looks like Jaeger's doing well at teaching you so far." A voice spoke, the red head turning and seeing a familiar dark haired Asian man standing before her now. Zhou raised his hand in greeting before the two approached each other and hugged. Shifting away from each other, Elle smiled at Zhou "What brings you to this part of Bremen?"

Zhou shrugged his shoulders while smiling "Not much, I was following up on a lead about something and on my way back I caught the end of your performance. I've got to go, lots of work to do. I'll see you later though."

The man turned and walked away, heading down the street and vanishing into the crowd. A feeling of warmth left in Elle's chest with his departure. She turned and walked to another place to perform as she smiled down at the empty cup in her hand. While he was obviously not able to hear her, she mumbled softly to herself "See you later."

_______________________________________________________________________

Music pumped into Elle's ears as she performed again, the time on the giant clock in front of the train station she was performing at read 2:45. Once finished, she'd head home and relax for a bit. Finishing with her big finally, people clapped. A group of teenagers that seemed like they wouldn't be impressed were nodding their heads in approval. Kids that wore matching uniforms stood with their teachers as they all clapped their hands, big smiles marking their features. Bowing Elle emptied a cup of change into her hand and shoved it into her pocket as a kid approached her and tugged on her coat.

Pulling an ear bud from her ear she looked at the young girl with a smile to match the girls. Elle noticed a tooth missing from her smile and judging from her height and possible age, the girl was still in elementary school. The girl looked up at the red head and spoke up in German "*Excuse me lady, where did you learn to do that?*"

"*Ancient Chinese secret.*" Elle said and pressed a finger to her lips as she winked at the little girl. The girl was beckoned back by her teacher as Elle replaced the music bud in her ear and began walking down the street, heading in the direction of Jaeger's place. Music continued to pour into her ears and drown out the world around her, she enjoyed each song fully as she hadn't had the chance to listen to it for quiet some time.

The songs changed as Adirectional by Four Grade Nothing began to play. Elle's feet moved to match the speed of the song as she walked, the time it took her to return home had made several more songs play through as she arrived at the front door of the building Jaeger lived in. Walking in she headed for the elevator, intending to head head to the top floor of the five story tall building.

Reaching her floor, she stepped off and proceeded to the door while digging for her keys. Pulling them out she pushed them into the door knob and turned them in order before pushing on the door. It came open as she pulled her keys out of the knob and walked in, closing the door behind her.

Jaeger stepped out of the kitchen on the right side of the living room with a cup of steamy liquid in his hand. Elle pulled one of the ear buds out and nodded to him before he pointed to a file on the table in the center of the living room. Looking to her left she saw a little area where the TV and couch were, a coffee table between them. The couch was vacant meaning Janis wasn't back yet.

"So, I'm safe now?" Elle asked as she approached the table and Jaeger opened the file. He nodded while he placed his cup on the table and flipped through some pages before finding the new evidence his 'friends' had put into the case file to lead them away from Mike. Jaeger tapped his finger on the file as he spoke "It'll take some time to plant the evidence that leads them away from you, but yeah. Once the news reports hit about you being innocent, you can go around in your normal form again."

Elle nodded, a sad smile crossing her face. Jaeger noticed the sad smile and closed the file. He pulled a chair out and sat down as he pushed the file away. Motioning for Elle to take a seat as he spoke "Something's bothering you."

Elle pulled her PSP out and shut it off before sitting down, pulling her coat back a bit as she sat. She reclined in the chair and let her head hang back, her gaze fixed on the ceiling "I saw Zhou today and a little girl called me lady. I wasn't offended by being called lady and I hugged Zhou without hesitation. I think I'm losing myself to this body."

Jaeger drank from his cup and savored the taste before placing the cup on the table top. Jaeger stared intently at Elle for a moment before speaking up and averting his gaze, his thoughts wandering somewhere else locked away in the back of his mind. His words reaching the red head ass he stared up "It's mankind's ability to adapt to survive, happens all the time. Most people call it Stockholm Syndrome though."

Elle brought her head down and stared at Jaeger with an eyebrow raised higher than the other. Jaeger noticed this and knew he'd have to explain. Leaning back a bit he folded his hands across his stomach and stared at his guest "In order to survive ordeals in a bank robbery, the hostages began to sympathize and defend their victimizers even after their release. This was at a bank in Norrmalmstorg robbery of Stockholm in 1973 between August 23rd and I believe August 28th. You're body is the victimizer and your mind is the hostage. You've grown attached and sympathize with your body more than you did when you were first cursed."

Elle blinked as she took in what Jaeger was saying. The man downed the rest of his cups contents and walked back into the kitchen. The sound of the coffee pot being picked up was followed by some shuffling around and the sound of running water. Jaeger came back with two cups, one was his coffee and the other was hot water. Walking up beside Elle, he slowly poured the hot water over the red head and she assumed her male form.

Mike stared at Jaeger a moment before swallowing and shaking his head "You have no idea how uncomfortable it is to be wearing woman's underwear right now."

Mike stood up and walked to his room, emerging a few moments later in the same clothes, minus the trench coat and woman's underwear under his attire. He had a towel in his hands and was rubbing his hair to get it dry as he joined Jaeger at the table. Jaeger sipped at his coffee as he looked at the now male house guest "I think it'd be best if you avoided Zhou for a while."

Mike stopped rubbing his hair and looked out from under the towel. He sighed and nodded his head as pulled the towel down into his lap and pushed his hair back. Mike yawned as he had been walking around all day and performing several shows. Now was the time to sleep, standing he grabbed the towel in his lap before it could fall to the ground and headed toward his room "I'm going to bed, wake me when you want dinner made."

"What if I was hungry now?" Jaeger smirked as he called after Mike.

"Make yourself a sandwich you useless, yerk-toting, frisbee-chucking cheeba-monkey." Mike retorted with a grin before closing the door to his room.

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Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

Useless, yerk-toting, frisbee-chucking cheeba-monkeys are property of PCU. Should they discover such a blatant use of their phrase, I will be forced to endure being chased by half a university campus for throwing some meat and being part of a white devil's conspiracy.

The characters Mike, Alex, Amber, Baby Joshua, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 19: Igg and Ook

Omake (Super)Short:

Yang: *raises hand* "Heya Zhou."

Zhou: *grumbles and lays head on table he's seated at*

Yang: "Awww, poor baby miss his love-muffin."

Zhou: *Throws empty water bottle at Yang* "Shut up, I only showed up once the entire chapter."

Yang: "You've had more screen time than me! I'm supposed to be the main villian and the author didn't even make me as bad ass as I should be."

Zhou: "Yeah, now he's trying to make us look like a couple of whining little bitches."

*Yang and Zhou stare at person hunched over a desk with a computer*

Both: "Hey Grizzly Adams! Get your scruffy ass over here."

Author: *shuffles to the table and falls over* "Urrrrrrgh."

Yang: *Grabs a stick and pokes Author* "Geez, when's the last time he slept?"

Zhou: *Shrugs* "No idea, he's been job hunting I think. But knowing him I think he's been playing video games again."

Author: "Don't make me have Jaeger blackmail you again!"

Yang: *looks at Zhou confused while poking Author with stick* "Did I miss something?"

Zhou: Jaeger tries to blackmail me, you ask "Did I miss anything." Osama Bin Laden could get killed, you say "Did I miss anything." I bet you went up to Mrs. Lincoln at the Ford Theatre and said "How was the show? Did I miss anything?"


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

Igg and Ook

David and Alex followed along, mimicking their movements to that of Ke Lun's as she attempted to train them in the ways of martial arts, their advances for the past two months being for naught without proper training to go with it. Their routines now including a period of training with Ke Lun to help them become more formidable foes for the Permanence Committee. Of course they had a hard time keeping up as Ke Lun tended to run them ragged and leave them as a pile of human pudding at the end of the day.

Today being no different as they collapsed on their rear ends after Ke Lun stated they were done practicing the form of the day. Ke Lun hopped off the top of her staff which she had been balanced upon and landed on the ground beside the gnarled piece of wood and looked at her two pupils. Having trained them, she figured they would have grown stronger as the training went on and shook her head "You boys are keeping up, but you don't seem to have any stamina. How you survived in this world before is astonishing."

"We weren't forced to fight for our lives before, we worked day jobs and played video games." David seemed to complain as he fell onto his back and groaned.

"That and we haven't had a decent days rest since you took over. The only time we rest is when we eat dinner then pass out. Our bodies need rest not total shutdown." Alex chipped in, having grown a little sore about the topic himself. That and the fact both him and Dave had their hands bandaged up, having harmed themselves from the constant training pushed on them. Alex had small burns while David might have had a broken bone or two.

Ke Lun thought about this for a moment then smiled to herself. She pointed at the two boys with her staff as she smiled like an old fox "Very well, if one of you can pass the proposed tasks I give you, I'll consider letting you have two whole days of rest."

Alex and David almost jumped to their feet before something made them groan and stand up slowly. The motivation to complete one task for a real break in their training was all they needed as Ke Lun looked at both of the boys. Pointing at David, Ke Lun seemed to want to get the lolligagger out of the way first "Your task is simple..... we're running low on the boulders we use to train your Bakusai Tenketsu. To the North of here is an old mine that was closed down by the town nearby, go there and bring 50 back before dinner. If you don't complete this, you don't eat for two days."

The idea of not eating through all this training was more of a thing to dread, driving them to want to complete the task even more. Something occurred to David and he blinked as he did notice they were randomly using boulders for his training but he'd never figured out where they had come from. Not lingering on the thought he set out in the direction north was, having been in the wilderness long enough he knew the town was to the west of the cabin so North wouldn't be too hard to find. As they watched him take off, Alex turned back to Ke Lun "And my task?"

Ke Lun wandered into the cabin and came out with an empty bowl. Hopping up on her staff next to Alex, she balanced herself again and held the bowl out. Alex was puzzled by this before Ke Lun tossed the empty bowl up softly and caught it in her other hand "Your task is much harder. You have to take the bowl from me before night fall."

Alex quirked an eyebrow at the old woman as the task sounded simple enough. Reaching out he grabbed for the bowl and her hand shifted slightly, the bowl now in her other hand. Ke Lun seemed to have a mixed smile on her face, one of smugness and playfulness. Alex used his other hand and Ke Lun shifted again, her arm moving and taking the bowl with it.

They continued this as their speed started to build, Alex tried to keep his eyes on the bowl as best as he could given how fast it was starting to move with the old woman's hands. Time had passed and David was carrying a boulder the size of a panda with him and dropped it on the ground before hauling ass back to the mine to grab another, stopping briefly to notice the fierce battle of speed taking place.

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Alex panted as he pressed his hands against his knees and was hunched over a bit. Ke Lun stood in front of him with the bowl still in her possession and seemed to be waiting for the young man before they continued. She had denied them lunch earlier in the day and was using hunger as motivation for their training along with the temptation of a break for two days. With Alex, he was forced to try and take the bowl from the old amazon's hand, a task that was proving to be a bigger pain in the ass than he'd thought, David had the task of retrieving 50 boulders from a mine.

Glancing over at David who was promptly sprawled across the ground from having from having worn himself out completely. It was obvious Dave hadn't completed his task as Ke lun stated that only thirty-two had been brought back. Alex turned his eyes back to the old woman as he swallowed and thrust a hand toward it. No sooner had it moved toward the bowl, than the old woman moved her hand. Staring her dead in the face he reached for it again and the bowl moved. If there was one thing he knew at this point, it was that he and David were tired, sore, in pain, and pretty damn hungry.

Eventually Alex's arms were blurs as were Ke Luns as she kept the bowl out of his grasp despite their rapid movements. As this continued, Alex started to move his arms faster through a combination of stubbornness and frustration from not being feed lunch. His eyes were starting to adjust to the speed they were moving at he eventually thrust his hand out at the right time and blocked Ke Lun's hand from moving the bowl. He let out a rather victorious laugh before promptly passing out.

Ke Lun looked down at the unconscious young man before looking toward David and shaking her head. She hopped down off her staff and sighed, her old age making her soft. That and her two pupils had progressed far more rapidly than expected in such a short time. She walked back to the cabin to prepare dinner while her two pupils lay sprawled on the ground of the man made clearing around their cabin.

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Alex struggled with a plastic fork as he attempted to eat his breakfast, the boys getting a period to regain their strength. Alex's hands were tender one could say, having been dealing with shoving them in fire and going up against the old woman. David on the other hand seemed to wince every time he moved, his body being covered in bruises and sore from everything the old woman forced upon him.

Groans and chewing filled the room a bit as before Ke Lun finished her food and sat at the table a moment before standing and grabbing her staff. She looked back at the kitchen and saw the small cubby hole like pantry the cooking area held was running low on most of the food stuffs they ate. Deciding that now was a good time she headed for the door "I'm going to go get supplies while you two rest, I'm sure you guys will be sleeping the day away."

Both of them nodded while chewing silently, the taste of rehydrated eggs had never tasted better since they could rest and relax. Most of the food they ate being meant for camping or places like their cabin. Lacking the proper appliances to have things like ice or frozen meals, they had to by MREs and dehydrated meals. If anyone has been camping, they'd know this.... rehydrated eggs don't taste that bad with a bit of salt and pepper.

Alex and David finished eating the last bits of their breakfast before stacking the dishes into the wash bucket and heading to their respective beddings. Laying down they felt their bodies jump for joy in a figurative sense at the feeling of relaxation. They both let out long sighs and closed their eyes as they felt sleep drift over them again, the probability that they'd sleep till lunch was very, very, very, very, etc, etc, etc.

It wasn't long before a bird pecking at the clearing was scared off by what sounded like a couple of grizzly bears snoring from inside the cabin.

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Ke Lun moved through the woods, traveling atop her gnarled staff like it was a pogo stick or some such as she whizzed through the trees. She mentally went over the list was she headed for the town. But unfortunately on the Eastern side of the clearing a pair of figures stood and examined the cabin with great interest. Having waited for a chance like this when Ke Lun wouldn't be around, the twins Isagami and Kanogami emerged from the shade provided by the green canopy of the trees.

"Alright, lets stick to the plan, in and out. But most importantly, silent. Got it?" Kanogami asked before turning to look at her brother and he was gone. Blinking she looked around and saw he was walking toward the cabin. She let out a grunt of displeasure before quietly chasing after the male twin. Before she could tackle him, he shouted out to the cabin "HEY LOSERS! Get out here, I wanna beat ya up!"

Kanogami slapped her forehead at her brothers lack of tact. She lowered her hand in displeasure and was surprised not to see anyone come out. The twins looked at each other and shrugged before jumping and grabbing each other at the sound of what might have been grizzly bears. Kanogami swallowed hard as she held on to her brother "W-w-w-what was that?! Is she training bears or something?!"

"I-I-I don't know, maybe they're martial art bears or something! Is that why martial arts master come to the woods? To fight Kung Fu bears and meditate under waterfalls?!" Isagami seemed to let his imagination run wild as he had heard rumors growing up in Japan about martial artists fighting bears and meditating in the wild. He was beginning to think Ke Lun was a woman from ancient times that trained the bears to fight people when he realized he was laying on the ground from Kanogami pushing him off of her.

The female twin had bravely approached the cabin and quietly pushed open the door to see the two pupils the woman was training snoring in bed. She almost fell over from shock and relieve at the thought that they hadn't screwed up and found some old woman that trained bears in a cabin. Why they would think that in the first place was beyond anyone. Japanese, go figure.

However once Isagami was in the cabin, the expulsion of two rather surprised and rudely awakened white boys made for a rather funny scene as they landed in a heap outside the cabin and looked around. Alex stumbled to his feet first as the twins stood near the entrance to the cabin and Kanogami was shaking her head and mumbling in Japanese.

David was a bit slower in getting up but stood up and looked around before turning and facing the twins. The twins had an advantage over the half awake and sore pupils of Ke Lun, but they'd have time to think of what it was later. Running at the pair of groggy people, Isagami grinned as he planned to shove his fist in both David and Alex's faces. Alex stumbled back as David fell to his knees and shoved his fist against the ground, his finger popping out at the last second and driving into the ground.

An explosion of shrapnel burst from the ground and pelted both David and Isagami, the surprise making Kanogami rush to her brothers side. Scrambling to his feet and holding his head from where a rock had pelted him in the head, Isagami was held steady by Kanogami. David staggered back to his feet as he stared at Isagami, a hint of grumpiness on his face. Alex was more awake now and moved up beside David, keeping him steady as he looked at the twins.

"And just who are you two?" Alex asked, his expression one of confusion unlike David who waved off Alex as they both stood up straight. David rubbed shoulder, his body tingling from being pelted with shrapnel. Isagami flipped the bird at the two as he cockily smiled "We're here to turn you into punching bags and drag your sorry asses back. You guys didn't think we'd just roll over for a pair of morons just because they learned some moves from that dried up old mummy, did ya?"

Alex and Dave looked at each other and seemed to have a hard time believing the loud mouth when he was holding his head. Alex kept his eyes on the pair and mumbled quietly "You take the girl, I got the loudmouth."

"Why do I have to fight the girl?!" David whispered back.

"Because, You can just pelt her with rocks and stuff, I'd have to actually punch her. I'm not about to hit a girl either."

"This isn't fair, I already softened your guy up."

"You hit him in the head with a rock, that softened him up about the same as shooting an alien spaceship with a slingshot!"

"Yeah well, I'v-" Before David could finish a pair of feet smashed into his face, making Alex go bugged eyed as he watched his friend fall over and the girl pull her legs back and land in a squatting position. Alex jumped at Isagami and smiled at David "See, they agree!"

Spinning, Alex brought his leg up and thrust his foot out toward Isagami and smashed it into his shoulder, making him spin before falling over. The male twin quickly flipped himself up onto his feet, he then proceeded to spin on one heel quickly and raise his other foot up in a spin kick. The leg connected with a pair of arms raised to one side to block the kick. Alex quickly grabbed his leg and pulled, he pivoted his body and hurled the asian boy into the girl who was standing up again, the twins colliding before falling on David.

David swore before they landed on him and he flailed a bit, Alex holding back a laugh. Trying to get out of the what would happen if Twister took a bad turn, Kanogami eventually wormed her way out of the dog pile and glared at Alex before running at him. She pulled her arm back in an attempt to throw a punch and Alex raised his arms to block. She smirked before dropping down into a slide, her leading leg going between his as she swept it up and to the side, pulling one leg up into the air and throwing Alex off balance. Spinning herself, she rose in a twirl and looked down at Alex. She looked back at Isagami and saw him sitting on top of the other boy and punching at him.

Isagami raised his fist and shoved it down as hard as he could into the face of David. The fist impacted full force and stayed pressed against the boys fist, David looking up at Isagami as if he hadn't been punched. Isagami blinked before pulling his fist back and throwing another punch, followed by another, and another. The punches connected, but in the end David and Isagami stared at each other before David threw a punch up and knocked Isagami over.

Standing up, he looked down at Isagami and moved his jaw, not really feeling anything. David smiled as he stared evilly at Isagami who was holding his nose. David stepped toward the male twin and promptly fell over. David may have not felt it, but his body was over loaded and hadn't really rested. A pair of feet and a few blows to the head were all it took to send his body into lala land, leaving Alex alone against two opponents.

Alex stood up and saw that David was out cold and looked at Isagami who was holding his bloody nose and Kanogami. He sighed as he knew he couldn't take two people at once, even now he was starting to feel his own body being a bit sluggish from the brief amount of fighting and his lack of recuperation. Alex frowned and stared at Kanogami before shaking his head and letting two words slip out of his mouth "Fuck it."

He ran at Kanogami and pulled his arm back, Kanogami raising her arms and shifting her body into a stance. Alex thrust his fist word and pulled it back, thrusting it forward again. The result was a wall of fists and blurred arm movements as Kanogami and Isagami were taken aback in surprise, the blows moving toward Kanogami. The male twin scrambled between the two and take the blows in his sisters place before Kanogami twirled around Isagami and raised her leg straight up, bringing it down on Alex. It connected with his shoulder and caused him to cease his attack as he hunched over a bit and held his shoulder. Isagami used his free hand to grab Alex's head and smashed his knee into his head, knocking him out and letting him fall to the ground.

"Oh my, look what I miss when I forget the money for groceries."

Isagami and Kanogami twirled around in time to see a staff send them both hurtling through the air in a rather comical fashion. Ke Lun watched as they vanished from the clearing and she looked at her two pupils. Shaking her head, the old woman sighed "Good grief, I guess I'll just teach you two how to fight from now on."

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"Take care, Janis!"

"Sure thing, see you next tomorrow!" Janis waved as she stepped outside of her place of work and turned around. Rain was pouring down, the blond frowning as she hadn't brought an umbrella. People passed by as Janis rummaged through her pockets and pulled out a cellphone.

"Don't think you need to call."

Looking up Janis saw a partially wet red head and smiled. The red head was wearing what looked like mens clothes and was holding an umbrella as they approached the overhang outside the restaurants front doors. Janis slide under the umbrella and pushed a locked of hair out of her face "Elle, did you finish 'work' today as well?"

Elle nodded as they began walking down the street, people either walking with umbrellas or dashing about with newspapers. Up till a short while ago it had been cloudy and Mike had been enjoying walking around in public as a guy for the first time in a long time. But the rain quickly changed that and a call from Jaeger while purchasing an umbrella told the male turned female what to do next. "Jaeger said to swing by and walk you home since he knew you would forget to bring an umbrella like usual."

"Like usual? I think you've been around my family too much if you're starting to say that about my habits and quirks." Janis chuckled as Elle smiled and shook her head.

"Lets not forget that time you ran out of the house without pants. I honestly think you'd forget your head if it wasn't attached."

Janis pouted as she gave Elle a soft punch on the arm "What about that time you came out of the bathroom with the towel wrapped around you waist? I swear that my Uncle made a world record with that spit take!"

Elle and Janis both laughed as they walked, chatting about things as they pointed out their flaws to one another. Eventually they reached the building and stepped under the over hang just outside the doors. Elle collapsed the umbrella and shook it a bit away from Janis to get the water out of it. Janis watched a few people run by in hooded sweatshirts before Elle caught her attention "We're having your favorite tonight by the way."

Elle opened the door for Janis as she stepped up to the red head and pecked her on the cheek. Elle blinked as Janis smiled and skipped inside "Walking me home and my favorite food for dinner. You're really sweet!"

Elle watched Janis go up the stairs and stared off into space for a moment before walking in the front door and motioning in Janis' direction. The motion being more of a confused gesture before Elle shook her head. Janis tended to be rather care free at times and it often made Elle do a double take in confusion.

Walking up the steps, Elle headed toward the apartment on the top floor. Reaching the door, she turned the knob and walked in only to be tackled by a man who rubbed his face against hers "There she is! I had thought Janis was you at first and tackled her by accident."

Elle used her foot and shoved Zhou off of her, looking over she saw Jaeger at the table, playing cards and chips on the table as Zhou had apparently been there a while. Janis was on the couch trying to ignore what Zhou was doing by pretending to watch TV. Zhou grabbed Elle by the shoulders and puckered his lips "Give your hubby a kiss."

Elle reached around her and grabbing for something before smacking Zhou in the head with it. The empty water bottle rolled around as Zhou held his head. Passing by Jaeger she bent down and whispered into his ear "I thought you said to stay away from him? Why is he here?"

"He said he had information on the Permanence Committee and bribed his way into staying for dinner. Can't be helped this time around." Jaeger shrugged as Elle shook her head and let out a soft sigh of frustration. Elle walked toward her room to get changed before starting on dinner. Before she could shut the door, Zhou slipped himself in with some strange ninja powers. He looked at Elle with all the seriousness in his being as he quietly spoke "We need to talk."

Elle walked into her room and pulled clothes out of her closet and placed them on the bed, not bothering to remove her coat thanks to the white dress shirt underneath "Ok, so talk."

Zhou slowly makes his way through the bedroom, lingering at the picture case he gave her. He stared at the picture of her and her friends before speaking up "The Permanence Committee has begun to move. They're targeting your friends it seems. I'm not sure if they're safe or not, but given they're all with Masters one can only hope."

Zhou walked closer to Elle and placed his hand on her cheek, staring into her eyes as she nodded to what he was saying before speaking "So they might come after me next?"

"Yeah, Be careful out there. I know Jaeger has you performing your little magic shows and you're alone when you do those. Take care of yourself." before Elle could give him an acknowledgment he leaned in and kissed her. It had been a while since he'd kissed her and she was taken by surprise. Outside the room, Jaeger and Janis would watch as her door was slammed shut after Zhou was briefly airborne from Elle punting him out of her room, the asian man landing beside the table.

Looking up at Jaeger he smiled "Time for me to win some of that money back."

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Elle emerged from her room in a dry change of clothes, the rest of her male cloths being in the wash. That included all her shorts and pants, leaving her with a skirt and dark blue shirt. Walking out of her room she watched as Zhou slammed his cards down on the table and stood up, pointing at Jaeger and being red in the face while shouting "You sir, are a whore!"

Jaeger made a crude gesture at Zhou's expense, Elle and Janis laughing. Elle walked toward the kitchen and snatched up the apron before putting it on. As she goes about preparing dinner Zhou calls out from the table as he scoops up some chips, winning the next hand of poker against Jaeger "You know, I'd still like to see you in just the apron."

Jaeger, Zhou and Janis all chuckle as Elle tossed an empty pasta box at Zhou's head.

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Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

Just a note! Chapter 19 was delayed from its release through a combination of procrastination and preparing for a family vacation. I held off on putting it out until the last minute so you guys would only be lacking the release of Chapter 20 less than you would if I had released 19 earlier. As such, This next week I will be on Vacation in DISNEY WORLD! (August 15-21)

If my brother brings his laptop I will attempt to work on 20 while I'm done there at night. It won't be posted till I get back.

The characters Mike, Alex, Amber, Baby Joshua, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 20: Dueling Staplers

Omake (Super)Short:

Alex: So Janis.... kissing Elle..... can we expect you to take her to dinner, if you know what I mean.

Janis: *bashes Alex with a hammer* I refuse to give consent for a pseudo-Yuri scene! This fanfiction is already confusing enough without the proper fleshing out of everyones training. That coupled with Zhou and Elle already doing it, that is like a pseudo-Yaoi scene since Elle is really a guy!

Alex: So... is that a no?

Janis: *groans and wanders off*


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Dueling Staplers

The sun was rising on San Diego, the thick veil of clouds a haze of red. But the sunrise wasn't that important to the pair of people atop of a restaurant. The top of the building was built into a makeshift training area to allow a certain asian boy to train. Standing atop a series of short wooden pegs that measured about a foot in height each, Ren balanced himself while holding a staff. The end of the staff was pointed away from him and a wooden block was balanced upon it as his Master sat off on a stool, watching intently.

"Alright, show me what you can do." Mandy said as she swung her legs a bit, Ren jerking the staff and making the block go up into the air. Shifting his body and the staff about on the pegs, he swung the wooden pole. He struck the block on its way down and knocked it back up, his movements matching those taught to him by Mandy a while back. He shifted his feet around as he continued to juggle the peg into the air, moving about and practicing with the staff in his hands.

This continued for a while as the sound of wood striking wood rang out above the early morning streets that lacked most of its movement and sound made from the people during the day. Ren showed no sign of looking down at the pegs as he had done this several times and was getting a feel for their locations. His staff moving everytime he did, striking the block and following through as he went through the motions.

Mandy watched this spectacle before glancing at her watch and smiling. Nearly twenty minutes of juggling the block without one slip up. Ren's skills obviously improved as she watched her pupil. She reached behind her and grabbed two more blocks as she held them up for him to see "Pretty good, time to see if you've improved with the other weapon."

Tossing the blocks up, Mandy watched as Ren knocked them both up into the air with the first one and twisted the staff. He pulled on the ends as the staff came apart slightly to reveal a chain, the staff now segmented into three parts as Ren adapted the way he moved along the pegs. The young man smiled as he started to juggle the three blocks "We've been doing this for a while now; I'm starting to get good at this."

"Hand eye coordination is a must; you need to be able to keep up with the subtle changes. The way the wind might catch a block and move it in the air helps with this in a small way. I think we'll move on to practical application in a day or two. That will require more skill than hitting wooden blocks."

Ren chuckled as he kept shuffling back and forth and his hand eventually shifted wrong as it hit a block at the wrong angle and smacked it toward Mandy. The block impacted against the stool she was sitting upon. As it pops up, Mandy kicks the block and causes it to fly up and knock the other two blocks off to the side and making them fall out of the way of Ren's reach as the young man stops and looks at Mandy.

"It's about time to get ready to open." Mandy said as she tapped her watch. Ren nodded and collapsed the segmented weapon into its locked staff shape and hopped off the pegs and onto the rooftop. Mandy opened the door to the stairwell and began walking down as Ren followed through the door and closed it behind him, heading down toward his room. Ren set his staff aside with his other weapons that rested on a table as he headed to the bathroom that was in his room and walked in, his plan being to shower and change before going down to clean up the shop and prepare for the day ahead.

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Ren had changed and was performing various tasks around the store. These tasks included sweeping, wiping down the tables, making sure tableware was ready, yadda, yadda, yadda. Anyone who has worked in the service industry will tell you how boring these tasks are and could be done by a monkey with no arms. Leaned his broom against the counter and walked to the front door, flipping the sign on the door and turning the deadbolt on the door to unlock it.

He almost jumped at the sound of a drawer slamming and looked over his shoulder to see Mandy rummaging about the backside of the counter for things and eventually kicked what sounded like a bucket over as she swore softly. Mandy walked over near the computer where orders were put in, pulled out a pad and paper, then began writing things down. She eventually tore the sheet of paper off the pad and held it out for Ren "Here, go to Staples and get me these things, we're out."

Ren walked over and took the list and began to read over it as Mandy went into the back. As he finished, Mandy reemerged from the back room with a small green pouch that was zipped closed and handed it to Ren. Having done this kind of errand before, Ren knew there was money in the bag from the stores safe. Ren pocketed the pouch and went up to his room and grabbed what things he'd need, leaving his weapons behind as he headed out.

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The overcast gave the day a shaded and cool feel to it, the hot sun hidden behind clouds. No sign of rain had shown itself yet, but Ren wouldn't be worried about rain like the others would. Having no curse did have an advantage at times in bad weather like rain storms. Walking down the streets, looked at the list and saw a stapler was at the top. He smiled remembering that the last stapler was broken when Mandy tried to fix it after jamming it.

Next were staples, after that was a veritable mixing pot of things. If anything he was glad that it was the morning, they never did get a lot of business in the mornings. It was only a few blocks before he arrived in front of the nearest Staples. There was nice breeze that accompanied the opening of the automatic doors as Ren stepped in front of the sensor.

He walked in and grabbed a basket before looking around the store and heading off. Ren hadn't noticed the asian man with an unlit cigarette between his lips and an eyepatch on his right eye. He was dressed in a boiler suit and looked like he was the mechanic from hell. Smiling to himself he followed quietly after Ren, not making himself known to the Protections Committee member.

Weaving around aisles before traveling down an aisle that was two aisle wide with a display going down the middle, Ren began to browse the staplers before stopping at one. Reaching out and grabbing the stapler he examines it before deciding it will be the one he buys when he notices a man staring at him. On the other side of the display is an asian man with an eyepatch that is smiling at him.

"May I help you?" Ren asks, trying to figure out if the man is just creepy or needs to be watched.

"You can. My name is Bao Fu and you can accompany me so the Permanence Committee can have a chat with you." Bao Fu said, his unlit cigarette gritted between his teeth as he spoke. Picking up a stapler, Bao Fu examines it before looking at Ren again "The only reason I haven't attacked you yet is because there are people around."

It was in this short span of silence that both of the men looked left and right, the apparent lack of people seeming to act like a gunshot at the start of a race. Hurling the basket at the other martial artist, Ren ducked behind the display. Reaching up he grabbed a box of staples and loaded them into the stapler before grabbing another to be loaded. Ren unfolded the bottom portion of the staplers and had his back against the display listening for the other man to make a move.

Bao Fu had dodged the basket and ducked, loading a pair of staplers in a similar fashion as Ren. Bao Fu leaned against the display as he unfolded his staplers, the upcoming battle would seem epic and thrilling to the two men about to engage in it. To those looking on, it would be very silly and hazardous. The kind of thing Jackass would pay big bucks for.

Leaping out, both men partook in a scene that would make John Woo proud as they aimed their staplers at the other man and fired away. Battle cries and staples bouncing off both men ensued before they landed and rolled back. Staples flew through the air before Ren ran out in one of his weapons and dropped it. Grabbing a box of toner, he chucked it at Bao Fu.

Bao Fu barely avoided a hit to the head before he grabbed a few boxes of pens and threw them. The boxes soared through the air at Ren before the younger man ducked into the next aisle. Grabbing a box and ran around the corner and chucked what looked to be a printer at Bao Fu who promptly swore and rolled out of sight. Ren grabbed more toner boxes and chased after Bao Fu, a group of people having gathered at the end of the aisle and watching various office supplies take flight at rather interesting speeds toward one of the two men.

The ensuing chaos eventually caused a shelf to fall over and made people start to evacuate as the silly fight had garnered hazardous status to the people looking on. Even the employees had been flabbergasted enough to stand there and watch with gaping maws as they couldn't believe their eyes.

As the last of the people evacuated, Ren was twirling a pair of mice like nunchakus while Bao Fu wielded a mesh file holder like a shield and comical over sized pencil like a sword. Bao Fu grinned, having lost his cigarette somewhere in the battle "You're not too bad kid, I haven't had a real fight like this in ages."

"I bet, it's not often you have a brawl in a Staples with office supplies." Ren scoffed as he flung one of the mice forward and watched as it was countered with the shield before sweeping at Bao Fu's legs with the other. Bao Fu jumped back and hit a display, falling over it and shouting "Oh shit!"

Ren twirled the pair of mice nunchakus before catching them under his arm as a ceiling beam collapses behind them, a printer falling along with it as it had apparently got lodged up there and forced the beam loose. Bao Fu stumbles to his feet as he eyes Ren, the stare returned by the nunchaku wielding man. The sound of sirens made both of them look around to see the Staples looked as if a tornado had waltzed in and exploded in a fungasm. Dropping the nunchaku they both made a break for the fire exit and burst out of it and ran in different directions. Bao Fu shouted over his shoulder as they parted ways "We'll finish this another time!"

"Damn right we will! I was winning!" Ren shouted as they turned their corners and vanished from the scene of the battle, or in this case crime.

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Bursting through the front doors of the restaurant, Ren hurried over to Mandy and began to explain everything that had happened after taking her to the backroom. After finishing, Mandy smacked Ren with her ladle as she demanded to know why he hadn't at least gotten the supplies at another store on his way back before he handed her back the green pouch still filled with money.

After ensuring the customers had ample time to eat, Mandy kicked all four of them out and closed the store early as she marched Ren up to the rooftop. Her only words to him upon hitting the last set of steps being "Time to put you in the advanced classes."

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While battles of comedy were taking place, the mid morning was upon Bremen. Positioned in front of a camera in rather cute clothing a certain red head was trying to hide her face as she protested to a blond girl "I am not a play thing!"

Janis giggled in delight as she stood behind a camera on a tripod and snaps another photo "You say that but you're still wearing the clothes."

"I'm sorry to break this too you, but I prefer plain pants and shirts to these cute ones." Elle looked down at herself and saw herself in an oversized pink button down shirt with little floppy bunny heads on them, the bunny heads drawn in a cutesy fashion that would appeal to children and rabbit fans more than Elle. Along with that she was forced to wear pink socks that were too big and her hair was braided and hanging down her shoulder. She looked like a girl that had just woken up as she was forced to sit against a giant folded futon with a pink and white color scheme.

Janis pouted as she motioned toward Elle "You look really cute in those clothes though; kind of sad you don't wear that stuff more."

"This kinda stuff looks cuter on you than me if you ask me." Elle said without even thinking as she used two fingers to pull on the collar of the shirt a bit. Janis blinked in surprise as she hadn't expected to hear that. Smiling, Janis fiddled with the camera before jumping over and dropping to her knees beside Elle "Come on, do this for me at least."

Elle sighed as she hesitantly looked toward the camera bit as it snapped another pictured. As more pictures are taken, Janis and Elle begin posing more and more. Eventually Elle is smiling as much as Janis and starts to get into the posing.

"Elle."

Elle looked over at Janis as she had called to her and was taken by surprise when Janis kissed her and a photo snapped. Elle blinked as Janis stayed in that position for a while, more photos snapping. Elle eased herself into the kiss before returning it. Before it could go beyond that however, the sound of a throat clearing made them both jump apart and look to the doorway.

Jaeger was leaning against the door frame as he points at Elle "Dress up can continue much later, right now you need to get ready to train."

Elle nodded silently and rose to her feet, shuffling out of the room and sliding a bit in her socks before kicking them off and vanishing into her room. Jaeger watched the door to Elle's room close before turning back to Janis. The blond smiled innocently at her Uncle before he shook his head "You realize Elle won't be here forever, don't you?"

"Yeah…. I know." Janis said as she nodded and hung her head. Jaeger steps out of the door frame as he goes off to prepare to train his pupil. The camera snapped a picture of Janis with her head hung, her pose very solemn if not sad. Crawling over, Janis shuts off the timer and takes her camera off the tripod, turning on the screen to view the pictures in the device. Looking at the picture of her and Elle as she began to return the kiss, Janis smiled softly as she at least had memories stored away on her camera.

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Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

If Staples found out about this fanfic, I'd gladly partake in a daring John Woo style escape using their own office supplies against them.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 21: To bring down a Master

P.S. A few words to those thinking of going to Disney World. One; Don't drink the water or anything made with concentrate, almost like drinking the water from Mexico. Two; Reservations are your friends, lot of the cool stuff like swimming with a dolphin and more than half the eateries are reservation only now.

Omake (Super)Short:

Janis: *Bashes Author with large blunt instrument* You bastard! I told you no and you went there again!

Prozack: Janis! Relax…… Ero-chan and I can make you feel more relaxed, just come with me.

Janis: What?! You keep away from me! Wait… what the hell is that Squeaky toy for!?


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

To bring down a Master

Zack balanced himself upon a pile of haphazardly stacked items, sweat beading his forehead as he the rooftop of Kiyoshi's apartment building, there was a tower of sorts that was constructed from random things on the roof and from Kiyoshi's apartment. On the top of this ten foot high wobbling structure stood Zack, holding his hands a few inches in front of his upper abdomen as he kept himself balanced.

His eyes were closed as he focused more on the space between his hands and less on falling down to break his neck. He not only focused but reached out from his core, months of meditation and training coming to the fruition of the small sphere of light that bloomed into existence before dimming out again, his body exuding a sense of presence as he balanced himself.

"How much longer do I have to be up here? I've been focusing my aura for a while now." Zack spoke out as he focused again, another ball blooming into existence before poofing out as he shifted himself with the coming of a strong breeze that might blow the tower down. Kiyoshi and Ero-chan were on the roof below, slightly to the side of course so they wouldn't have things falling on them. Kiyoshi was sprawled out on a couch that was on the rooftop, looking like he was resting "How long have you been up there already?"

Zack opened on of his eyes and glanced at his wrist before returning to his former position "About two hours now."

"Great, when we hit the 4 hour mark you can get down." Kiyoshi yawned as he peeked up at Zack who groaned to himself. Ero-chan was sitting a few feet from Kiyoshi on the roof with a few folders tucked safely under a potted plant to keep them from blowing away. She giggled at Zack's misfortune while looking through the folders, each one having to do with her magazine and modeling business. She looked up from the magazines at Zack and smiled "Come on, you can do it!"

"This is not an Adam Sandler film!" Zack proclaimed while correcting his balance.

"What if I change 'it' to 'me' if you make it?" Ero-chan teased, knowing all to well that Zack would jump at that chance given how she's been busy with photo shoots and he had to train. Zack gave her his best perverted grin as a response.

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Several hours later Prozack was stepping out of Ero-chan's bathroom, wearing nothing but his boxer shorts while he rubbed his chin. The smooth feeling was refreshing to him as he hated the feel of stubble on his chin. He looked over near the door and saw Ero-chan slipping her shoes on as she smiled at him "I have to head to the office for a bit, I'll be back late. You might wanna think about buying some more hair dye, the blue is wearing out."

"I dyed my hair yesterday though." Zack responded with a muddled expression across his features.

"Didn't mean the hair on your head."

"Never again Nanami." Zack said shaking his head as they both chuckled before she headed out the took this time to grab some clothes and change as he had to head back to Kiyoshi's soon. Slipping on a pair of pants with straps that hung off the back, making an X of sorts. He pulled a long sleeve shirt on over this and ruffled his blue hair a bit before heading out the door.

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Zack jogged up the stairs leading to the roof of Kiyoshi's apartment building and pushed open a door as he stepped out into the cool air. The sun behind him was starting to dip toward the horizon but hadn't quite dropped below it yet. Laying on the couch near the door into the building, Kiyoshi flipped through a magazine and giggled to himself. Prozack rolled his eyes as he knew training would be put off forever if he waited on Kiyoshi to put the magazine down.

Picking up another magazine, Prozack chucked it at Kiyoshi and pegged him in the head. This spurred the old man off the couch as he stood and looked at Zack who smiled and shrugged. Kiyoshi and his pupil took up fighting stances almost on que as they began to throw punches at one another. Kiyoshi landed a blow before blocking another, Zack then using the block to raise a leg up and kick him in the side before they parted away from each other.

Kiyoshi spun on his heel as he pulled off a roundhouse kick that would make Chuck Norris proud, however Zack spun on his heel while ducking and moving his body. Shifting under and around the kick as he emerged behind Kiyoshi after the kick's rotation finished. Kiyoshi brought his elbow up and back hard as Zack raised his arm and blocked it before shoving against Kiyoshi hard and pushing him away.

Kiyoshi followed through the shove, using the momentum to lower himself into a roll as he gained some distance from Zack. Getting to his feet, he spun on his heel as he brought his hands together and pushed, a small wave of what appeared to be pale blue light launching itself at Zack. The attack collided with Zack and sent him back into the door of the stair well, a lurching noise coming from the metal obstruction. Zack rose to his feet, one hand holding his lower back for a moment before the two combatants charged one another.

Their kicks and punches colliding with a block or narrowly missing their target as they shuffle about hte rooftop and assaulted one another. Prozack focusing himself for a moment as he launched a chi blast like Kiyoshi had, but missing his target as the old man proved to be faster on his feet than he looked. First blood went to Kiyoshi as Zack stood up while groaning before spitting on the ground, his lip having a small cut on it. Wiping it off, Prozack looked at the old man who hopped around like Bruce Lee would if he had ADD and was jumping on a couch.

Zack let out a rather impressive battle cry for someone with blue hair as Kiyoshi grinned and did the same, but fighters halting themselves at the last possible moment and diverting their momentum into a back spin while raising their legs. Both of their legs crossing with one another as they threw their first matching blow since their time together. Both of them retracted, but Kiyoshi had another movement going as he appeared to cover himself with a pale blue aura. Thrusting his hands out, the aura shot at Zack and launched him into couple of potted plants placed on a metal shelf rack.

The shelf fell over with Zack as the plants broke and dirt scattered around the crumpled heap of a young man. Groaning he tried to focus himself and make the world stop spinning as Kiyoshi walked over and squatted down beside the fallen shelf and looked at Zack. Reaching out he lightly slapped his forehead and made Zack open his eyes and look at him. Smiling, Kiyoshi spoke to his pupil "Not bad kid. Most people I train don't make it past the training with the truck let alone manage a chi blast in the middle of a fight."

"Thanks pa, but I still haven't gotten any better at fighting against you." Zack stated half heartedly, this earned a laugh from Kiyoshi as he helped Zack up. Zack dusted himself off as Kiyoshi motioned to the shelf Zack had crashed into "Most of my pupils don't stay conscious after taking a blast like that. You may not see it, but you've grown since showing up on my doorstep a few months ago. You went from being a hunk of play-doh to an incomplete marble sculpture thanks to my training. For instance, you couldn't even center yourself to make a chi blast like you did a moment ago when you first came to me. Now look at you, a bit more training and you might be more focused like me."

Zack took what he said with a grain of salt as compliments from Kiyoshi were rare. The pair headed downstairs to Kiyoshi's apartment to avoid being at the scene of crime when it came to the broken potted plants that belonged to Kiyoshi's neighbor one floor up. But had they stayed, they would have witnessed the most profane amount of foul language ever let loose by a senior citizen, even more than Kiyoshi.

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Prozack lounged about Kiyoshi's place, his body sore from hitting the shelf or the chi blast from earlier. However that was nothing a good deal of couch time and some Ero-chan healing wouldn't cure later tonight. Zack began to stand up, the call of nature strongly telling him to make it to the 'Water closet' as the Japanese like to call it. Several moments later Zack emerged in a rather dramatic fashion followed by a loud and relieved sigh "My business..... is done!"

Kiyoshi shook his head, not understanding his pupil at times. But this feeling was mutual as Zack didn't understand his master at times. As Prozack approached the couch again, Kiyoshi called out and stopped him "Oi, I have an errand for you."

Zack groaned as he was leaning over, about to plop down and was forced to stop before straightening himself "What now? More hentai doujin? Or maybe you want more women to scare off"

Kiyoshi waved off Zack's remark "Nah, I've had my fill of doujin for today. I have a friend who said he was going to be coming to the area. I want you to find him and make sure he gets here without any problems."

"Find him? Where is he supposed to meet me and what does he look like?" Zack asked as he sat on the arm of the couch, waiting for the details.

"No idea where you'll find him, but I can tell you what he looks like. He's bald, of short stature, wears a purple gi, and he's a little perverted." Kiyoshi said as he turned on the tiny TV placed by a futon and laid down, relaxing as Zack groaned and shook his head. As he walked out her mumbled "So just look for a mini-me version of you then."

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Akihabara was a rather large place to look if you didn't know where to start. Sadly, this was the case with Zack and his search for the man he didn't even know the name of. Having forgot to even ask for the man's name, not thinking to have learned it before asking the first five people about the location of this miniature person. The sun had dipped so far below the horizon, all that was left were traces of red light in its wake.

Having grown fed up with just looking, Zack headed to some of his masters favorite shops, hoping that the friend had similar tastes. Arriving at the street, only a few people were present as they mostly just mingled about for a moment from the looks of things. Walking down a ways, Zack headed inside one of the many adult shops on the street that Kiyoshi frequented.

The guy behind the counter smiled, greeting Zack who returned the greeting and walked over to the counter and leaned on it. The man asked if Zack was here for the next batch of stuff on Kiyoshi's list, Prozack shaking his head as he continued to state being here to find some friend of his masters. The two men chatting about where Zack might find clues before their conversation changes directions.

Time passed before Zack realized he should head out and see if he can't find the miniature version of his master as he walked out the door. The night air was a bit cooler than it had been when he had gone into the store and Zack sighed at the idea of having to be out all night and decided to try another part of Akihabara. Turning he took a single step and stopped, a man standing at least twenty five feet or so away from him.

"You stick out more dressed like that." The man said as he watched Zack with a solid gaze. His grey hair hung loosely about his head, unkempt in appearance much like his beard. His attire reflected a very business like appeal what with the suit and all. Zack cocked an eyebrow as he stared at the old man and smiled "Ok crazy person.... I'm going to go this way now."

Zack turned and started to walk away, not looking back at the man. However as he walked to began to question who the man was. This question answered itself as Zack stopped dead in his tracks, the old man behind him speaking up "Turning your back to a member of the Permanence Committee, not smart."

The hair on the back of Prozack's neck stood on end as a smiled crossed his face. Zack brought his hands up and turned around, his fingers moving in a way that his knuckles let loose a loud popping noise, his mind centering itself as he stared at the old man that was now starting to walk toward him "And here I was beginning to think the hell I was being forced into was all for nothing."

"It will be for nothing, I intend to drag you back to America to be taken care of. You may think you're strong but your master hasn't braced you for the likes of someone like me."

"And just who are you?"

"Master Xiua, Permanence Committee." Xiua stated as he charged at Zack, the younger man doing the same as they meet halfway. Zack threw open palm strike which Xiua batted to the side with and arm block. The old man shifting the arm he used to block, thrusting it forward at Zack to hit him in the head. Zack leaned to the side as the strike smacked into the edge of his ear and he swung his arm up, Xiua simply jumping back to avoid being smacked in the bottom of his jaw.

Zack held his ear for a moment before inhaling sharply through his teeth as Xiua watched him. After a moment Zack shook his head a bit before placing his hand over his ear and looking at Xiua "What the hell man, you punched me in the ear!"

Xiua smiled before charging at Zack again. Zack raised his arms to braced for a punch to his head again when he felt Xiua strike his palm into the young man's gut. The strike sending a surge of pain into Zack as he launched away from Xiua, smashing into several metal trash cans with a loud clatter. A fading blue aura smoking off Xiua's hand before vanishing completely as the elderly man righted himself and waited to see if Zack was still conscious.

The sound of shuffling and Zack staggering to his feet while holding his gut made Xiua hum in interest at the idea that he had been underestimating the boy. Zack on the other hand was getting angry, the smell of fish and trash was now stuck in his nose and it made him want to vomit. Breaking into a sprint Zack launched himself at the man, thrusting his foot out while moving at Xiua. The old man promptly side stepped the attack and Zack landed, skidding to a halt before moving at the old man again.

"You're becoming unbalance, off center. And here I thought Kiyoshi had taught you something." Xiua taunted as exchanged blows with Zack, mostly remaining on the defensive as they shifted about the vacant street. Zack decided it was time to pull out the ace up his sleeve as the two fighters locked blows and leapt away from each other. Zack barely waited a heartbeat after breaking away from the other man before he focused his aura into his hands, a small sphere of pale blue light blooming into existence before Zack hurled it at the old man like a baseball.

The old man had to keep from laughing as he merely leaned and twisted his body a bit, the sphere going right by him and blowing a couple of metal trash cans away. Righting himself he looked at Zack with confidence that could only come from one who was assured he had victory in hand "You still need training. Perhaps you shouldn't try taking on the Permanence Committee till you've had a few years to prepare."

With that said, Xiua held out his hand and a pale blue sphere bloomed in the palm of his hand, the sphere being nearly double the size of Zack's. Bringing his arm back, Xiua tossed the orb at Zack, the thing launching itself in a straight line toward Zack who rolled out of the way before kneeling as the orb blasted a small crater into the street with a loud explosion. Looking over at Zack he smiled.

"Son of a bitch." Zack mumbled as he felt like he was outclassed in every way possible by the old man. Standing up, Zack stared at him before he made his decision. His body glowed a pale blue as Xiua followed suit, the pair of fighters having a Mexican stand off in Japan. Both fighters centered themselves before holding their hands out and focusing in front of them.

Before any flashy fighting moves or super-duper-monkey-pooper techniques could be fired off, a small object falling at Xiua's feet made them both look at it as their auras faded. Before they could see what it was however, there was a bright flash and an explosion followed by someone shouting "Happo Daikarin!"

Zack had been knocked flat on his ass by the explosion and was temporarily blinded by the bright light as he blinked. Had this been an anime, one might have noticed spirals in his eyes before shaking his head comically to get them out. As he began to see things again, Zack would notice a crater where Xiua had been standing that was smoldering rather impressively. Xiua on the other hand would he soaring the air in one direction or the other.

"What's the big idea!" Zack was bashed on the head by something and fell onto his back. Immediately afterward he felt a weight on his chest, looking up he saw a diminutive old man with a pipe in his hand and a large burlap bag on his back that must have been three tiems his size. The bag seemed to be overflowing with what appeared to be women's underwear. The old man stared at Zack as he seemed offended by something "Who do yu think you are?! Putting one of my favorite shops in danger!"

Zack looked behind him and saw he was laying on the ground in front of the lingerie store next to the porn shop he had been in before fighting Xiua. Zack looked at the old man "You wouldn't be Kiyoshi's friend by chance, would ya?"

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Kiyoshi listened as he nodded his head at Zack described the events that transpired. Realizing they had sent Xiua after Zack, the old pervert looked at his pupil. It was Zacks turn to listen as Kiyoshi spoke to him "Compare to Xiua and myself, you've barely seen the tip of the iceburg. Tomorrow I'll have to quit taking it easy on you or you won't be ready.... but first, lets see what you brought this time Happosai!"

Zack almost thought his master was having a serious moment with him before he turned to Happosai, the diminutive old man he had been looking for and almost gotten blown up by. Happosai laid the sack down and opened it as he revealed a large pile of women's panties to Kiyoshi, both of them laughing perversely as they shifted through it. Happosai speaking in Japanese to Kiyoshi as he laughed, his words would have translated to "What a haul!"

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Mike staggered into his room and wobbled over to his bed, the training session lasting a bit longer than usual by a few hours. Mike's arm had been dislocated by Jaeger then popped back into place in the space of a few seconds as the latter had disarmed him during knife training. Plopping down on his bed, Mike kicked off his shoes and began to undress as he sat on the edge of the mattress.

He reached over and turned on his alarm and felt his fingers bump into something before he grabbed it and flipped on the light. He saw an envelope in his hand, not sealed but obviously containing something. Turning it over, he flipped it open and pulled out several photos. As he shuffled through them he saw they were of Elle and Janis from the other day.

The last ones being of them kissing, including one of Janis by herself after Elle had left the picture. Mike stared at the photos a moment before picking the best ones out and standing, walking over to his chesterdrawers and grabbing the photo case that Zhou gave him. Opening it up, he slipped the photos in and closed it. After that he turned off the light, finished undressing, and collapsed on his bed then drifted to sleep.

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Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

If Happosai found out about how small a part I gave him in this Chapter, he'd probably use the Weakness Moxibustion on me and throw me in a mosh pit.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 22: The Coming Storm

P.S. Sorry about the delay, my brain exploded and finding the smaller pieces was a pain in the ass.

Omake (Super)Short:

Tyler: *looks around* HOLY CRAP! I'm in a chapter again!

Rest of Cast: *punts Tyler out of Omake* You know you don't come back till Chapter 25!

Tyler: *flying into distance* Damn you! *blinks as a shiny star in the distance*


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

The Coming Storm

A flash of light bouncing off steel glinted across the roof top in the mid day sun when it wasn't shrouded by dark clouds. This flash was quickly followed by the sound of metal striking metal as Mike and Jaeger locked knives and pushed against said weapon to try and gain leverage over the other. Normally Jaeger would overpower his pupil, but months of training in hand to hand combat, knife training, and illusiona techniques started to show in their sparring matches. Jaeger quickly eased back on his knife as he shifted himself to the side, Mike blowing past him in a stumble.

Mike quickly spin on his heel after catching himself mid stride, bringing his arm close to his body as he blocked the next strike from Jaeger. With his arm effectively pinned against his body, Mike used his free arm to throw a punch toward Jaeger's throat. This caused him divert his attention away from his pressure on the knife as his other arm came up, curling at the elbow beside his head as the punch rammed into it. Mike pushed heavily against both his knife and Jaeger's arm, pushing him away as they gained equal footing again.

"Not bad Michael, but you're still leaving me alot of openings. Being pinned like that is the perfect spot to use an illusion on your opponent." Jaeger said as he relaxed his posture and motioned for Mike to do the same, ending their mid day sparring session. The pair of them were sweating from the work out and it wasn't long before they began to shiver, cold weather having started to make itself known in recent days. Jaeger tossed Mike his trench before grabbing his own coat and putting it on.

"Yeah well forming illusions quickly in the heat of battle still isn't easy for me. I don't know how you do it." Mike said as pulled his coat on and wrapped it tight around his body as he walked toward the bench their coats had rested on. Leaning down he grabbed the sheath for his knife and slipped it back in, snapping the clasp that held the handle in place shut so it wouldn't slide out on accident. Jaeger did the same with his knife before both of them headed toward the door that would take them back downstairs.

Walking back into Jaeger's apartment they went to their respective rooms and changed clothes, throwing the sweat stained articles into hampers in their rooms. Mike stepped out and sat down at the table, Jaeger still in his room. Mike heard drawers opening and the sounds of him rummaging through them, the walls in the apartment being rather thin in terms of separating the rooms. Jaeger's door opened and the man emerged holding a box in his hands, the item contained within being withdrawn the moment he placed the container on the table.

"It's not uncommon for practitioners of our particular style to use amplifiers such as artifacts." Jaeger started, holding what appeared to be a knife with the blade wrapped in a brown cloth. Unwrapping the blade, the weapon resembled a modern day green beret survival knife save for the elaborate and jewel encrusted handle. Titling the blade, a dazzle of blue light would glint off the weapon as Jaeger took it by the handle "This knife took a while to restore, my master gave it to me when he passed away. His master before him, and so on. This knife has a history, one of mindless violence mostly but I think you can break that cycle and use it to bring justice."

"Justice? What do you mean?" Mike asked, puzzled by Jaeger's words. The door to the apartment opened as Zhou walked in. Both men looked to the door as Zhou started to greet them but was cut short by Jaeger standing and swinging the knife at the new arrival. Seemingly from nowhere a tornado of swords descended upon the man, concealing his fate as screams were drowned out by the clinking of metal against metal. Jaeger snapped his fingers and the illusion faded away to reveal Zhou passed out on the floor, his body vacant of any cuts or wounds.

"I think it's time we had a chat Michael. A chat about the Permanence Committee."

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"You sure this is how it goes?"

"No, I'm sure your Mum can tell us though."

"Don't get snippy with me. I've never had to handle one of these before." The first man stated as he motioned toward the device resting on the table. The room had windows that were blacked out with paint, cramped conditions, and a single light bulb hanging from the center of the ceiling over a table. Resting on said table was a rather crudly constructed device that barely passed as threatening in their eyes.

"Why can't we just use a bazooka or something? None of us know how to build a proper bomb." a third man said as he leaned on the table and stared down at the device. If anything, they were lucky they didn't just blow themselves up. The first man pulled out a file and opened it on the table, pictures of Elle, Zhou, and Jaeger in them.

"Listen, lets just get on with this ok? We have two main objectives in this mission of ours. First is pass on this little present to the girl, the second is to give Zhou a wake up a call on who he's working for. He's obviously forgotten so Yang wants us to remind him." The first said, as the other two nodded. The first assigned the second man the task of handling the bomb while the first and third would handle Zhou. After agreeing, they placed the bomb in a bag before heading otu of the cramped room.

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After ensuring Zhou woke up and was gone, Jaeger sat Mike down at the table and stared him dead in the eye. The look was making Mike feel as if he'd done something wrong before Jaeger finally spoke up. His words breaking the short lived silence and almost making Mike jump out of his seat "You obviously know about the Committees. But whatever you heard is small potatoes compared to what I can tell you. Overall the Permanence Committee uses aggressive tactics as you know, but this aggressiveness has never exceeded anything more than a pummeling and dragging someone back. For instance when pursuing you and your friends, have you noticed them use anything beyond a tranquilizer dart gun?"

Mike thought for a moment, the only time he remembered seeing a gun was in the clearing right before Ke Lun showed up. Shaking his head with a no Mike spoke up "Now that you mention it no I haven't. They only used those against us in the woods. Probably would have succeeded if Ke Lun didn't save our asses."

"Right. In fact the only people that use actual firearms are the security guards for the front of their Headquarters in America. Even then it's only four or five guys with revolvers and they are plan old average joe guys. Their group uses martial artists for the bulk of their ranks, even then they're just well trained flunkies. They only have six real masters, that's including their Branch leader." Jaeger said, wrapping the knife up again and resting it in the opened box. Mike listened intently before blinking and staring at Jaeger confused "How exactly do you know all this stuff anyway?"

Jaeger paused at this point, staring at the knife for a moment before looking back up to Mike "I was a member once. Leader of the America branch for a while, but that changed when I heard of what they were planning to do to a child. They had the idea to make a monster for their cause, raising it to overcome any opponent so they could 'win'. The only reason they got me involved with their organization was through using my loss at the time. My sister and Master had died in short times apart from each other. They offered me money, a place to stay, stable living to a degree. After I realized they were nothing but monsters and I was being one of their leaders so I left. Ke Lun found me wondering around in China with Janis before she could even remember any of it and helped me get back here. I help the cursed people the old lady sends me and she makes sure the Permanence Committee is held back for the most part."

Mike was dumbfounded by all the things being said to him. He shook his head before raising his hand and pointing at Jaeger, raising his voice in anger "You were one of them! And a leader no less! Christ, I've been here for a couple months and you just happen to not mention this to me? What the hell Jaeger! Wait...... wait one fucking minute, does that mean Zhou has been lying about who he works for?!"

"Calm down, I said I left their ranks because I disagreed with them."

"Yeah, but you DID for a while from what I can see. You were with them long enough to be the head honcho." Mike said, standing up and stomping to his room. Moments later he emerged in his trench coat and wrapped a scarf around his neck. Mike headed for the door as Jaeger stood and placed his hand against Mike's chest, stopping him "I've been trying to atone for what I've forced people to become. But I feel that won't be enough in your case. You and your friends are becoming a threat to them, I can see it. From what you've told me, whoever replaced me is a far more aggressive man than I was. The only way they'd stop hunting you is if you turn the tables and hunt them. I can help you with that.... but only if you'll let me."

Jaeger lowered his hand as Mike glared at his master with piercing eyes. You'd think at this point Mike would Snake Strike him and run, but his anger wasn't letting him think straight. Huffing past Jaeger, the pupil slammed the door behind them on their way out. Mike made his way downstairs and out of the building as he began to walk.

Walk he did, Mike walked through the now familiar streets of Bremen. He walked circles around the area as he started to block out the world around him. Even when a car skidded to a halt and almost rammed him with its horn blaring, he wasn't drawn from his thoughts as he tried to calm himself and think of what he should do next. Eventually his feet grew tired and Mike stood on a bridge that overlooked the water of the Schlachte.

Looking out over the water, they noticed a rain had come while they were zoning out. Shivering, Elle pulled her coat tighter around her body before walking again. Looking around she saw it had been raining for quite some time, her coat almost being soaked through in some parts. She turned once she reached the end of the bridge, heading down the slope carefully as she went under the bridge as the shops on the side of the Schlachte she was on had no overhangs.

Leaning against the base that the bridge was built upon she stared at the ground, hugging her body to stay warm. Elle closed her eyes as she tried to piece together why things had to be so complicated as she felt a tugging deep in her chest, almost like a sinking feeling. She looked down at herself, opening the coat as she took in her baggy wet clothes clinging to her.

"Maybe it'd be simpler to just have them change me into this." Elle muttered as he view became hazy. Elle slide down the wall she was leaning against as she brought her hands up to her face and breathed deeply. She didn't make a noise as she set there, the rain pelting the world outside the underbelly of the bridge where Elle sat. Lowering her hands, she stared out over the water that was untouched under the bridge as she saw a single patch of calm within the storm.

She wiped her face on her sleeve before she hugged her knees to her chest and sat there, zoning out once more as she let her mind wander.

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Zhou rattled the keys to his apartment as he groaned, turning the knob as he stepped into his darkened dwelling. He hadn't expected Jaeger to react to him showing up outside the specified times they agreed upon before Elle had gone to Jaegers place. Zhou pocketed his keys and flicked the switch on the wall as he took a few steps into the apartment.

Zhou stopped when he found it was still dark and took a few steps back and flicked the switch a few more times as it remained dark in the apartment. Zhou finally sighed and stepped in, shutting the door behind him as darkness swallowed up the room. "Turn on the lights already."

"You're ruining my dramatic entrance here Zhou." A man said as he clicked on the light in living room and smiled at Zhou. A second man leaned against the far wall and looked at Zhou with a rather stern expression as if he didn't want to be in the room. Zhou glanced at them before stepping forward and looking into the kitchen area "So where's the third member of your stooge trio?"

"He's delivering a 'gift' to someone. He also said to remind you who you worked for." The first man said as he tossed photos of Zhou and Elle together on the table as Zhou walked further into the room. Zhou held back a frown as he didn't like the idea that the Committee had decided to spy on him. He looked back up to the first man as he spoke again "Going native won't end well for you Zhou. I'll tell you this, we'll be back soon and when we come you'd better be prepared to make your choice."

As the two men began to head to the door Zhou scoffed quietly, waiting for them to leave as he mutter to himself "They seem reassured when someone instills them with the authority to not kiss ass. And what the crap was he spewing about a gift?"

Zhou glanced down at the photos and spread them out, looking at some that were taken from within Jaegers apartment before his eyes went wide and he dashed for the door "Oh God!"

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Footsteps against the conrete filled Elle's ears as she stared out at the patch of water under the bridge, the rain still pouring down. The feet stopped on the edge of her peripheral vision, drawing her eyes over before she trailed upon the persons body and locked eyes with the man. Jaeger lowered the umbrella and collapsed it before sitting next to the soggy red head.

"You're doing almost the exact same thing I did before quiting the Permanence Committee." Jaeger said as he leaned back against the wall. Elle took a deep breath before speaking to him "Walking around town in the rain then sitting under a bridge getting so confused about your situation you don't realize you're crying till it's too late?"

"... The walking and thinking bits yes, the crying bits no."

"You know, I'm beginning to think that giving in would just be easier than sitting through all this."

"Don't think like that, trust me. It only makes them think they're even more in the right if their targets start to volunteer to be changed. You'd only be dumping fuel on the fire. Not making it easier in the end. You and your friends took up arms, you can't half ass that kinda decision."

"Says you."

Jaeger gave Elle a look of skepticism and a soft nudge with his elbow before looking out at the water "Stop being so damn mopey. Surely not all of your time here is a waste because I kept my past from you. Your friends are training to defend themselves from further attacks, but I'm sitting here offering you a chance to take the fight to them and put an end to it. You should be jumping with joy."

Elle turned her head and looked at Jaeger who pulled a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket and pulled two out, handing one to Elle. Elle hesitated before taking it and screwing it between her lips as Jaeger pulled out a lighter and lit their cancer bestowing vices. Elle and Jaeger blew smoke into the air as Elle sat up straight and leaned her head back against the wall as her legs slid out and straightened themselves.

Elle reached into her coat and pulled out a small metal case and opened it before she looked down. Inside were pictures of her and her friends, her and Zhou, and finally the loose pictures of her and Janis. Jaeger looked at the pictures before looking at Elle "You going to let these people down because you have a doubt?"

Elle snapped the case closed as she looked at Jaeger "Your plan of fighting back would only work if you could actually get in contact with the others."

".... You're kidding right? They're really just a phone call away. When they contacted me, they gave me a number to call should I need to inform Ke Lun of any changes. All you guys need to do is meet up in L.A. and I'll provide you with a strategy for a blitz attack that would cripple them if done right. If you're daring you might even uproot their branch in America, but I'm a little doubtful of your guys pulling that much off."

"You haven't seen us work as a team before." Elle said before taking a drag off her cigarette as she stood up, blowing smoke out of her nose as she did so. Jaeger stood as he looked at Elle who started to stretch her arms up above her head while groaning, having been sitting curled up in a ball for a good while. Jaeger walked to the edge of the bridge and opened the umbrella as Elle came up beside him.

"You know... I think I just needed time to think it all out. This curse has been a stressful thing to deal with in the first place, ever since I came to Europe it's just gotten worse I think."

"It only got worse because you married Zhou." Jaeger quipped as they began walking under the umbrella.

"I DID NOT MARRY HIM..... BY CHOICE!" Elle frantically exclaimed as Jaeger snickered before taking a drag off his cigarette.

_______________________________________________________________________

Jaeger and Elle turned the corner leading to the street that Jaegers apartment building was on as they made their way back home. They chatted about the various ways that Elle and her friends could strike back as the red head flicked the butt of her cigarette into the street. Barely two minutes after turning the corner however, a resounding boom and a flash of heat washed over the pair. Looking up they saw what caused the sound as bits of building fluttered to the ground amidst the dying rain. Fire steadily burning in Jaeger's apartment building, more exactly in his apartment.

"JANIS!" Jaeger bolted for the building in a panic. Elle quickly followed after him before people shouting for an ambulance made her glance over and stop dead in her tracks. Resting in the middle of a caved in car roof was a bloody and seeming knocked out Zhou. Elle turned, running to the car as she climbed up on top of it, coming up beside him and lifting his head gently with one hand while the other found its way to his chest and shook him softly "Zhou! Zhou, wake up! Oh God, Some one call 911!"

_______________________________________________________________________

Doors burst open as an EMT performed CPR on Zhou while straddling him on the gurney as it was pushed my multiple hospital personnel and Elle who also held onto his hand as they moved him to an Operating Room. It wasn't long into cutting his shirt off that they guided the red head out of the room and closed the doors. Stepping back Elle fidgeted about in place as she looked around then back at the door, fear gripping her.

It wasn't too long after Zhou was moved into the OR that she saw another gurney with Jaeger in tow. Elle went pale as there was only person that Jaeger would be sticking that close to. Elle staggered over to a line of chairs and plopped down into one and buried her face in her hands as she tried to hold back screaming at the crap being shoved into her life.

As she sat there, her body breaking down as she began to cry, a hand found its way onto her shoulder and she looked up to see Jaeger. His expression was solemn as he shook his head and closed his glazed over eyes. Like many other times, Elle didn't know why but she stood as if her body had a mind of its own. Her arms wrapped around Jaeger's shoulders as she buried her face into his shoulder and cried.

Jaeger seemed to stand there for a moment before his arms wrapped around Elle and he silently weeped, his only living family ripped from him. Sadness wrapped around both of them as they waited for word on Zhou, eventually sitting down as their bodies were becoming weary from recent events.

_______________________________________________________________________

"Miss?"

Elle was softly rocked awake by a doctor in partially bloody scrubs before she stirred. She bolted upright at the sight of the doctor. Her heart pounded as she feared the worst but the woman smiled at the paniced red head, making the pounding in her chest almost come to a sudden halt as she informed her that Zhou was stable and would make a full recovery, going on to state he's lucky to have survived the explosion that blew him out the window and onto the car five stories below "He has been moved to a room to recover, he'll be out for a while thanks to the sedatives. You can visit him if you like."

Elle sighed with relief while the doctor headed off to change. Elle almost felt the twitch of a smile about to come to her lips as she sat back down. She turned her head at the sound of Jaegers voice "He survived the fall because of all the crap he's been through. Hell, I'd have been surprised if it did....... Here, thought you might want this."

Jaeger extended his hand, a cup of coffee in a cheap paper cup held firmly by the man. Elle took the coffee and thanked Jaeger as she blew on it before taking a sip. She looked at her master and sniffed, still a bit broken up "What now?"

"Handling the Police, getting a temporary place, recovering our stuff, and.... tending to the arrangements for Janis. I'm sure the Committee will be a bit displeased that one of their own was injured in that blast." Jaeger said before sipping at his coffee before blinking as he realized something and looked over to Elle who was staring at him.

"I only saw two ambulances at the apartment. They don't carry two injured in one...... is Zhou.... is he-"

"Don't think about these things now. Just go visit him. I've got some things to take care of."

"Jaeger!" Elle almost shouted as she stood, but the man pulled something out of his coat pocket as he faded away much like a mirage. Elle blinked as she stared at the empty space that was once occupied by her master as she swallowed. She downed her coffee and crushed the cup before throwing it into a trashcan with all her might as she prowled toward the reception desk and asked for Zhou's room number.

After getting the number she headed through the hospital before walking into a private room, closing the door behind her as she looked at Zhou. Aside from bandages on his head and arms he didn't seem to be hurt too bad from a visual standpoint. Elle walked over and adjusted the chair next to the bed before she pulled her trench coat off and sat down. The steady sound the heart monitor was all that sounded out in the room for the longest time as she merely stared.

She didn't know when it happened but she laid her head down next to his body on the bed, her eyes drooping heavily before she fell asleep.

_______________________________________________________________________

Three days, that's how long Jaeger had been missing and Elle had practically glued herself to Zhou's bedside. Off and on the Nurses and Doctor trying to advise her to go home and get some rest as she was starting to look a bit ragged, but she declined mostly because she had no place to go to yet. Thus she slept in Zhou's room, refusing to part with him as she snoozed quietly beside him.

"Where am I? What's this?" Looking down he saw his hands lacked any features, color, all in all he looked down at himself and saw he was like one of those super deformed chibis. He reached up and ran the stubby ends of his arms over his face and found he had no facial features save for a pair of eyes. He sighed as he hated lucid dreams that weren't the usual modification of a Monty Python skit in his head. Looking around he saw he was standing in a inky blackness with no end.

"God you really watch too much anime if you see yourself as a chibi in your dreams." Chibi turned and saw two people standing in front of him. Both wore blacks suits as they stared at the chibi. The chibi blinked as he saw Mike and Elle standing next to each other. Elle raised a hand and snapped her fingers as the darkness pulled back like a curtain and they were standing on the top of a giant soda can surrounded by a field of cigarettes.

Chibi looked around before nodding "Ok... if this is my minds landscape, I must say I'm disappointed at the lack of naked women and video game references."

"I don't intend to get naked. We need to talk anyways." Elle said as she looked at the Chibi before flicking her wrist, causing a cigarillo to appear and slipped it into her mouth, Mike lighting it with a blowtorch he seemed to pull from nowhere in particular before tossing it over his shoulder and off the top of the soda can. A small fireball burst upward after a Ker-chunk noise, Mike smiling as he pulled on the cigarillo and seemingly cloned the lit one.

Chibi shook his head as he looked at the two images of himself "Ok, well I must say this is one of the strangest dreams I've had."

"No, I think the strangest was one you were laying on a bed of breasts that suddenly turned into booby piranhas and ate you alive." Mike chipped in before Elle smacked him up the back side of his head and stared at Chibi.

"You've been doing the push-pull with us for a while. I think you need to figure out which of us you prefer." Elle stated bluntly as she blew out what looked like purple smoke from her cigarillo.

"Prefer? What do you mean?"

"Come one dude. We're your frigging mind, subconscious and all. You need to come to terms that living with Zhou and Janis has turned your insides to liquid shit like the Ebola virus does to people in Africa." Mike said snapping his fingers, the giant soda can opening and sucking the three of them into it. Chibi descended through the darkness before coming to find himself resting in a comfy chair in what appeared to be an empty lounge. The sounds of a piano drew his attention as Mike calmly let his fingers slide across the keys as _Dearly Beloved_ filled the room.

"What the hell, I can't play piano and you know it. And why a Kingdom Hearts song?!" Chibi said as he motioned toward Mike angerly.

"Nothing says we can't have a little mood music. Besides, you wanted video game references and they seem to be enjoying it." Elle said as she placed a drink on the table, her attire now resembling that of Jessica Rabbit from 'Who framed Roger Rabbit?'. Chibi stared at her for a moment before she turned his head to keep him from staring at her. His eyes ended up staring at two booths placed side by side.

"What the hell...." Chibi mumbled as he saw Mike and Janis in one booth and Zhou with Elle in another. Both booths seemed brighter and more like memories than actually being there.

"Janis and Zhou. Well, I suppose it'd be quicker just to update this portrait huh?" A snap from the Elle standing next to Chibi and one booth became vacant. Zhou and Elle still talking and smiling at one another. Chibi looked at the Elle next to him as she smiled "Well guess that's that, I mean after all here's you in real life right now."

Chibi looked back to the booth and saw Zhou's hospital room. His body asleep at Zhou's bedside. The image faded and Chibi looked back to Elle as she leaned against the table "Admit it, life would be simpler without a constant curse, Zhou would take care of you, and you wouldn't be hunted anymore. Sounds good right?"

The piano stopped as Chibi descended once more into darkness stood alone. Elle and Mike appeared before him once more as a crossroads rested under their feet. Mike opened his mouth as he spoke up "But even then, choosing that life means giving up on your friends. Leaving your family behind, never being able to talk to them. Your friends might even take offense to you abandoning them like that. But on the other hand you could fight, maybe find a way to lock this curse away. Solve all your problems."

"But poor Zhou would be devastated I bet." Elle shrugged. Elle and Mike walked down different directions of the crossroad, Elle going left while Mike went right. Further down their respective roads were various clouds, each containing memories that stand out as well as possible future events that may unfold. Chibi looked left and right before looking straight. Another road laid out before him.

The voices of Elle and Mike spoke out together as they vanished into the clouds of memories "Of course you could stay as you are, but is that kinda choice really going to solve anything? Maybe you should linger here and think it out."

Elle stirred as she felt something shake her shoulder. Lifting her head she rubbed sleep from her eyes as she, looking up she her head had been lying on the bed. She saw the hand that was shaking her belonged to Jaeger who looked at her. He lifted his hand off her shoulder as she sat up straight "Bad Dream?"

"Not sure.... I remember it pretty clearly but I would say it was more confusing than bad." Elle answered as she rubbed the back of her neck.

"What was it about?"

"It....I was standing at a crossroad, Elle to the left and Mike on the right with no one ahead of me. They said I needed to to choose, I just don't get why." Elle said as she went on to tell Jaeger more about the dream she had. Jaeger nodded a few times before excusing himself and walking out of the room.

He came back a few moments later with two cups of coffee and handed one to Elle "What do you like more, men or women?"

Elle almost spit out a mist of coffee at Jaeger as she quickly swallowed and looked at Jaeger, her face having a deep shade of red to it "What?!"

"Zhou or Janis?"

Elle went silent as she stared at her master as he continued to ask her questions "Waffles or Pancakes? McDonalds or Burger King? Chiptole or California Tortilla? Playstation or Xbox? Being male or being female?"

Elle started to get flustered as she shook her head "Stop! What is the point of all this?!"

Jaeger looked at her as he watched her reaction "Merely testing something. Have you been indecisive alot in your life, gotten angry about things you can't choose, or maybe depressed?"

"I suppose so, why?" Elle sighed heavily as she was getting a little annoyed at his sudden change in behavior.

"Remember back when I said I did what you did under the bridge? I was also like you when I was younger. My Master helped me channel that before he died, ever since I've been trying to improve what he taught me. I have one last thing to teach you before I send you back."

_______________________________________________________________________

Elle and Jaeger lit up cigarettes the moment they stepped outside. They didn't have long to enjoy them however as a voice caused both of them to look up at a shadow descending upon them. Judging from the size and shape it was a boy in his teens that seemed to be dressed in yellow and holding a red bamboo umbrella that was now pointed at Elle..... and he was falling upon them fast.

"RANMA SAOTOME, PREPARE TO DIE!"

_______________________________________________________________________

Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

If any of the corporations Jaeger mentioned found out about this story, they'll find out I WAS FROZEN TODAY!

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 23:

P.S. Sorry for the delay, I was busy running around inside the TV and killing monsters with my super powered ego.

Omake (Super)Short:

Author: *walks into the room* Hey guys, I found a job I might like to work at. Seems hard, but should pay well.

Mike & Alex: What is it?

Author: It's a career in car sales

Mike and Alex: Sweet.

Job: *burst through the window and throws Author against he wall, then pegs him with pens*

Author: *stands up and holds his pen wounds* Oh my God! AAAUGH!

Job: Oh you think that's hard, I'm just your orientation! That's the real job over there! *Points to a serious of monstrous cars with price tags*

Car Monster: Yo.

Author: Oh God help me!

Job: *shoves a finger against Author's chest* God can't help ya now! *proceeds to destroy the room with an office chair before looking at Author* Hey, there's a customer with huge boobs over there.

Hot Customer: Hi.

Author: Uh, cool?!

Job: It would be if you weren't getting your ass kicked so hard! *smashes the nightstand through the wall*

Fanfiction: Hey you bitch, I'm the fanfiction! You can't mess with me!

Author: Thank God you're here!

Fanfiction: Don't worry pal, I'll sa-UGH!

Job: *Impales Fanfiction on a sword before slowly looking at Author*

Author: Oh God.......


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

Wandering Europe, Mistaken Identity!

Elle and Jaeger both stared up in surprise at the young man as he descended upon them. Jaeger caught a familiar feeling from the boy while Elle wondered how the hell he got so much air into his rather impressive lunge. All the while that the boy fell, he aimed a bamboo umbrella at Elle and screamed "RANMA SAOTOME, PREPARE TO DIE!"

Jaeger scowled as he finally recognized who it was and pushed Elle to the side before diving in the opposite direction. The boy smashed into the steps of the hospital and caused them to explode a a way that had several on lookers go slack jawed and bug eyed. When the dust cleared they almost fell over at the size of the crater that was once a set of concrete stairs. Elle rubbed her butt as she groaned and Jaeger got to his feet.

The boy stood in the rubble as he smiled to himself before pointing his umbrella at Elle "Who'd have thought that you'd run away to America, Ranma. It's time to finish this!"

"That's not Ranma and you're not in America. This is Germany, Ryoga. Haven't seen you in a while." Jaeger said quickly as Ryoga turned and looked Jaeger before looking back at Elle and taking a good look at them. He scratched the back of his head as he chuckled nervously.

Elle stood up and glared at Ryoga and Jaeger as she made them both swallow. The onlookers finally got over their shock of seeing the stairs get destroyed when they averted their eyes as the two men let loose blood curdling screams. Elle crossed her arms as she looked down at the two men curled in the fetal position with pained expressions, the red head being quiet worn out despite having just woken up a roughly ten minutes ago or so.

After gaining the ability to stand, the trio quickly moved away from the ruined staircase to avoid being questioned by security or police.

_______________________________________________________________________

"So you guys know each other?" Elle asked after swallowing a mouth fulll of coffee. Ryoga and Jaeger both nodded as Jaeger went on to explain Ryoga's condition causing Elle to look quizzically at Ryoga. Jaeger caught the look and smiled before pointing a thumb at the Asian boy "This kid has been around the world more times than an airliner. I still don't get how you crossed over the Atlantic without knowing it though."

"Neither do I, one minute I'm in a place called Sand Eggo and then I'm here. I think I just zone out most of the time really....." Ryoga said, looking down into his coffee a bit depressed at being no closer to home than he was several weeks ago. Elle shook her at the utter helplessness of hte boy as she drank more of her coffee.

Conversation between the three went on as it was revealed that Ryoga had been wandering around America for quite some time before making it to Europe. The trio rested at the streets side cafe a short while before Jaeger glanced at a large clock on the wall just inside the cafe and stood up "You two get acquainted and head back to the apartment. Elle, I want you to grab some things from our rooms. Clothes and such mostly then head to Zhou's place. I need to take care of somethings."

Elle and Ryoga watched as Jaeger downed the last of his coffee and walked down the street after dropping some money on the table beside Elle. Before he got too far Elle quickly called out to him "Jaeger.... Be careful, okay?"

Jaeger turned and looked at Elle, a solemn expression upon his face "Don't worry about me, Ryoga watch after her for me."

Elle blinked as Jaeger walked off, her master telling someone else to watch out for her. She sighed while diverting her gaze into the dark liquid of the coffee. Ryoga looked at Jaeger before he disappeared around the corner then turned to Elle "You two..... a couple?"

"No, I'm his pupil..."

"Why does he seem down?"

"When we get to the apartment you'll see why." Elle said as she downed her coffee and paid the bill before leaving. She had to hold Ryoga's hand as she guided him down the street, this made him lower his head a bit to avoid the people around him seeing he was a bit red in the face. Not just from the action but more from the fact it looked like he was being guided around like a child.

After a bit of walking Elle stopped and looked at Jaeger's building, Ryoga raising his head as he saw the damage done to the building. Part of the building was scorched on the outside in some places, the top floor had some windows blown out from the explosion. Elle swallowed as she stepped forward and dragged Ryoga behind her as she brushed past the police and went into the building after explaining she lived there.

She worked her way to the top floor and saw some floor boards were nothing but splinters, part of the wall leading into Jaegers apartment was destroyed, the door had been torn off by firefighters and thrown on the floor as well. Inside there was a hole where the living room had been. Elle stood in the broken doorway as Ryoga looked in from the hole. He glanced over at Elle who was looking at the hole and spoke up "It looks like a bomb went off."

"A b-bomb did go off, it killed Janis and almost..." Elle trailed off as her vision blurred and a tear strolled down her cheek, an image of Janis and Zhou being blow away by the bomb flashing into her mind. Ryoga walked over and placed his hand on her shoulder as she swallowed and closed her eyes. After a few deep breathes she calmed herself down and stepped softly into the apartment, working her way along the opposite wall to avoid the hole and weakened floorboards before going making her way to her room.

Inside she grabbed clothes and various other things before heading out and going into Jaegers room and doing the same. She saw a picture on his nightstand, a younger Jaeger and sister apparently pregnant at the time. Elle grabbed the picture and stared at it a moment before slipping it into Jaegers bag and left the room. She looked at the door that would lead into Janis' room and hesitated before making her way to around the hole in the floor again so she could leave the apartment.

Ryoga took Jaegers bag and they walked down the stairs and out of the apartment. A short ways down the street, Elle sat on a bench with Ryoga as she placed her bag beside her and leaned back, staring up at the scattered light grey clouds that dotted the sky. Ryoga looked back up at the building before looking to Elle. When she spoke he almost jumped as he listened "So what's your story anyway? You called me Ramen Sowtome before, what's all that about?"

"You mean Ranma. That jerk! If I ever get my hand on him, let me tell ya, I don't intend to stop hunting him until he gets a taste of my hell!" Ryoga almost started to shout before going on a tangent in Japanese as Elle stared at him nervously smiling as she scooted a bit more away from him. Eventually he crushed the metal arm rest during his tangent making Elle even more nervous.

"Scary guy....." Elle muttered under her breath before trying to calm Ryoga down.

_______________________________________________________________________

"You're kidding.... all this started over bread?! What are you petty?"

Ryoga almost had an outburst toward Elle but stopped short as he grumbled and munched on a sandwich that Elle had purchased while they were walking to Zhou's apartment. Ryoga told Elle the long tale of his time spent around the Tendo dojo and his constant feuding with Ranma. He also told her of Akane and let slip his curse after getting splashed by someone driving through a puddle. This caused a short break to change him back before Elle bought the sandwiches.

"Though... I kinda get were you're coming from about liking the girl Ryoga. But then again when you talk about Ranma, you tell me you hate his guts but you also compliment his strength. Sounds more like you guys are rivals more than enemies."

Ryoga huffed softly "He's enemy to women everywhere, if you every meet him you'd see what I mean."

They walked through the door leading to Zhou's building. Heading up the stairs Elle guided Ryoga as he finished off his sandwich and they stood infront of his apartment door. Elle fished around through her bag and pockets before producing a key and pushing it into the lock. Turning it then the handle, Elle pushed open the door and guided Ryoga in.

"Where's the bathroom?" Ryoga asked a bit sheepishly before Elle pointed to a pair of doors on the left wall. Ryoga walked up to one and opened it before Elle realized which one it was and called out "That's the closet!"

Ryoga stepped out and cross the room before heading into Zhou's room as he bowed his head "Sorry about that, I got it this time."

Elle face palmed as she groaned before guiding Ryoga to the bathroom and closing the door behind him, calling out through the door "I hope you can at least find the toilet by yourself."

Elle placed Jaeger's bag on the couch before heading into Zhou's room and putting her bag on the floor by the closet. She looked at the bed and took a deep breath before plopping face first into the pillow. She crossed her arms under the cushion as she lay there with her face buried in the pillow. She didn't know if it was being in his room or laying with her face on his pillow but her thoughts turned to him.

The red head heard a flush and stood up, walking out to see Ryoga going back into the closet. Elle shook her head as she dragged him out and sat him on the couch "Lets just sit for a while."

_______________________________________________________________________

Time had past and the two continued to talk as Elle talked about her time with her friends growing up, letting Ryoga know a bit about her. When the door opened they both looked over and saw Jaeger walk in with a rather ragged look on his face.

"You ok? You look like hell." Elle spoke, the concern in her voice duly noted by Jaeger who merely nodded.

"I'm tired, took me a while to find another place, but I did. Get some rest, we'll go there tomorrow. Ryoga, if you stick around I'll take you back to Japan myself."

Ryoga nodded eagerly at a chance to get home without getting lost. Jaeger grabbed his bag and headed into the room Elle had used before coming to Jaegers place "Great, sleep on the couch. I'll wake you all up when it's time."

_______________________________________________________________________

Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

No real joke in this quip here, just an FYI moment. I know this chapter was short, crappy, and overly late for one that lacks length, but my minds a little strung out from creating too many story concepts and working on two books at once. I will however say this, I hope to improve the time between chapters for the next two or three at least.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 24: Dispair, Jaegers Last Lesson

P.S. I know I have alot of typos at times, but it'd be nice if people could review my shit more. I can't get better without creative criticism.

Omake (Super)Short:

Author: *walks in front of Mike, Ryoga, Jaeger, and Alex. All of them wearing white t-shirts and white boxer shorts* Good evening class!

All: Evening

Author: *Looks around and notices people missing* Where's all the others then?

All: They're not here.

Author: I can see that! What's the matter with them?  
Mike: Don't know.

Alex: Must have got Flu.

Author: Flu! They should eat more fresh fruit! *Makes a strange face while tilting his head to the side*

All: *looking at each other, puzzled*

Author: *Face goes back to normal* Right! Now self defense! Tonight I shall be carrying on showing you how to defend yourselves against anyone who attacks you with a piece of FRESH FRUIT! *makes face again*

All: *groans*

Jaeger: You promised you wouldn't do fruit this week.

Author: *steps toward class* What'd you mean?

Alex: We've done fresh fruit for the last nine weeks.

Author: What's wrong with fruit?! You think you know it all, eh?!

Jaeger: Can't we try something else?

Ryoga: Like someone who attacks you with a pointed stick?

Author: *Stops toward Ryoga* Pointed stick! OH! OH! OH! We wanna learn how to defend ourselves against pointed sticks, do we? Getting all high and mighty, eh? Fresh fruit not good enough for you, eh? OH! OH! *stands face to face with Ryoga* Well let me tell you somethign my lad! When you're wlaking home tonight and some great homocidial maniac comes after you wtih a bunch of loganberries, don't come crying to me! *walks away from group* Right! And now the passion fruit *skip turns and takes a flimsy stance* When your assailant lunges at you with the Passion fruit-

All: We done the Passion Fruit.

Author: What?

Mike: We've done the Passion Fruit.

Jaeger: We done Oranges, Apples, Grapefruit-

Alex: Whole and segments.

Jaeger: Pomegrantes, Greengages.

Mike: Grapes, Passion Fruit.

Jaeger: Lemons

Alex: Plums

Mike: Mangos in syrup.

Author: Cherries?

All: We did them.

Author: Red and black?

All: Yes!

Author: All right..... bananas.

All: *sigh*

Author: We've haven't done them yet have we? Right! Bananas. How to defend yourself against a man armed with a banana. *picks up a banana* Catch! *tosses it to Alex* Now it's quite simple to defend yourself against a man armed with a banana. First of all you force him to drop the banana then, second, you eat the banana, thus disarming him. You have now rendered him 'elpless.

Mike: What if he's got a bunch?

Author: Shut up.

Ryoga: Suppose he's got a pointed stick.

Author: Shut up! Right now you .

Alex: Alex.

Author: Sorry, Mr. Alex. Come at me with the Banana. Go on, be as vicious as you like with it.

Alex: *walks toward Author normally*

Author: No, no, no! Put something into it! *pushes Alex back into line* For Gods sake hold the banana like this *holds arm up and Alex copies it holding the banana like a knife* Now scream!

Alex: AAAGH!

Author: *backs up into his place* Good! Right, now attack me!

Alex: *Runs wildly at Author* AAAGH!

Author: *Pulls out a gun and shoots Alex making him fall down. Tucks gun into boxers and stands over Alex before leaning down to pick up the banana* Next.... I'll eat the banana! *peels banana*


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

Dispair, Jaegers Last Lesson

A river ran through along a wide strip of grass, a thick line of trees blocking the view from the road that lead into a housing area. Not exactly the wilds of nature, but it was a short drive from Zhou's place. Jaeger had rented a car and taken it off the road. The three of them stood in the clearing as Jaeger downed the last of a cup of coffee. Elle nodded her approval "This looks like a good spot, but are you sure we won't be bothered be onlookers?"

Jaeger nodded "Yeah, most people passing by are in cars and wouldn't spot us unless they were looking. No sidewalks on that road so the only people walking by would be kids running around to play. We're set to go here."

Jaeger placed his empty cup inside the open van as Ryoga looked up, an airplane passing by overhead but looked like it was coming in for a landing "Are we near an airport?"

"Yeah, there's one right over the next hill pretty much. But enough about that, Elle I want you to understand a few things. This technique I told you about was one I never fully finished, I grew out of my indecisiveness, you haven't. Alot of the technique is channeling your conflictions, worries, and doubts about anything into a singular form. You have to hold on to these ideas in your head and feel them flow through your body." Jaeger said as he approached Elle. He motioned his hand for her to give him something as he spoke "Give me that photo case of yours."

Elle dug through her pockets before handing it to Jaeger as he flipped it open and arranged the pictures a bit before holding them up to Elle. The two pictures she could see were her and Janis along with her and Zhou. She felt a tightness in her chest as she looked at them, her eyes saddening a bit as she shook her head "What's the point of showing me those?"

"A torn heart is a powerful thing before it charges towards a decision. Before you make that decision, use that confliction to your advantage. Center yourself and channel it like you would an illusion, only make the attack real instead of some trick of the light." Jaeger said closing the case and pocketing it. Jaeger turned Elle to face the river and patted her on the back "Give it a try."

Elle sighed as she had the thoughts of Zhou and Janis fresh in her mind, her feeling about them causing her dream from the time in the hospital to replay on her mind. She held her hands in front of her as she tried to do what Jaeger said. As she focused, her eyes still closed, a wisp of red light fluttered to life before growing rapidly. Elle opened her eyes and looked at the light before it vanished as quickly as it had grown "What the hell was that?!"

Ryoga pointed at the space the ball of light had once occupied "Another variation of it? How is this possible?"

Jaeger glanced at Ryoga "Variation? What do you mean?"

"A technique I know, the deeper my depression the more powerful the attack. Ranma created something like it, but I didn't think there was another one."

"Ryoga, techniques are passed down and go from place to place. I wouldn't be surprised if there were variations. Although I wish I remembered you had something like that earlier."

"Sorry about that?" Ryoga said while smiling at Jaeger. Jaeger promptly shoved Ryoga toward Elle as Ryoga looked at Jaeger confused.

"Show her yours, let her get a handle on what she should be doing. I'll be right back." with that said Jaeger hopped in the car and drove off toward the road as Ryoga joined Elle and began to example his technique in a way that she could understand.

_______________________________________________________________________

The van pulled up as Elle formed another wisp of light that quickly faded and she sighed "Ryoga, can't you just give me a demonstration?"

Ryoga shook his head "Sorry, it requires my ki to become heavy. It's not like you will depression on yourself."

"So lets make you depressed." Jaeger said as he climbed out of the van with a shopping bag in one hand and a book in the other. He tossed the bag to Elle as he smiled "Change into those real quick, it'll help get you the demonstration you need. But first, We need to do something with your hair."

Elle caught the bag and looked inside, a change of close present. She looked at Jaeger confused as he approached her with scissors "What's going on?"

"You'll see, now turn around. Ryoga come here." Ryoga came around back as Jaeger helped him measure where to cut to make a pigtail. Jaeger snipped the back and clipped the front a bit and wove the hair into a pigtail and tied it off before pushing Elle toward the van "Go change."

Elle did so, going around behind the van where they couldn't see and changed into the clothes in the bag. Shoving her regular clothes into the bag, she came back around in a red dress shirt and black sweat pants "Mind telling me what the point of all this is?"

"R-Ranma?" Ryoga stood in awe as he stared at Elle. Jaeger placed his hand on Ryoga's shoulder as he smiled.

"What better way to get you depressed than have someone that looks like Ranma taunt you?"

Elle walked back toward the pair as she looked herself over "Ranma looks like this?"

Jaeger pulled out a cellphone and snapped a photo before handing it to Elle "Pretty much, shirt is different though from what Ryoga tells me."

Elle looked at the photo and saw that she looked different than before with her hair styled like the Ranma person that Ryoga and Jaeger mentioned. Ryoga was still a bit surprised as Jaeger leaned over and whispered some stuff into Elle's ear while taking his phone back. Elle looked Jaeger confused, but he merely nodded.

"Hey P-chan, Akane said she wanted to marry me." Ryoga felt a sharp sting in his chest as he looked at Elle who had spoken.

"What did you say?!"

"What's wrong? Lose your sense of hearing too?" Elle said before Ryoga charged at the red head and threw a punch. Elle yelped and dove to the side before rolling into a kneeling position and looking back at Ryoga. She shot a worried glance to Jaeger who nodded and Elle turned her attention back to Ryoga.

"How dare you say such things to me, Ranma! I'll make you pay!" Ryoga chased Elle around for a bit which made Jaeger raise his eye brows in surprise at how fast the smoker was running. "I won't leave Akane in the hands of a half-man like you!"

The last remark about being a half-man brought a twitch to Elle's eye as she felt a bit of anger inside her for that "Eat a dick, Pigboy!"

Ryoga growled as his ki formed around him "You first! Shishi hokodan!"

The blast ripped through the air and impacted into Elle as she let out a pain yell. A splash and a few moments of calming himself down Ryoga realized what he did "Oh no! Elle!"

_______________________________________________________________________

Elle coughed up water after some pressure was applied to her body in the right location, this was followed by a coughing fit as Ryoga bowed his head. Jaeger was kneeling over her as her eyes started to adjust. She realized she was wet, cold and sore in some places. She looked at Jaeger who was the closet and wet unlike the dry Ryoga "....Did you?"

"I gave you CPR, I think Ryoga would have run off in the wrong direction while trying to save you." Jaeger smiled weakly as Ryoga apologized to Elle as she stood up and wobbled toward the van despite Jaeger telling her to lay back down.

She rummaged through the van and found the small pack she'd brought with her and removed a tooth brush and toothpaste from the bag. She began scrubbing the paste into her mouth with the brush as she grabbed the bag with her dry clothes in them and walked around the van "I'll be over here brushing my teeth, my gums, and my esophagus."

Jaeger and Ryoga let out chuckles as they realized she'd be fine. After a few more hours of training, Elle learned to basic concept of the technique. The book Jaeger bought helped explain that Elle was tormenting herself over her indecisiveness, mental anguish, and overall feeling about major choices in front of her. He told her quietly that most of her confliction came from gender issues she was having as well as love, her future, and consequences of her actions. She adamantly denied this quietly becoming flustered. With that in mind, her practice led her to create the most basic form but aside from creating it, it didn't do much other than sit in her hands for a while.

They had called it a day as they all got into the van. As they made their way through Bremen, Elle requested to be dropped off in front of the hospital that Zhou was staying. Jaeger agreed and told her they'd see her back at Zhou's apartment. When she reached his room she opened the door and smiled but quickly lost the smile when she found the room was empty and the machines turned off. She walked over to the nearest reception desk as she spoke up "What happened to the man in room 212? Zhou Jiyan?"

The receptionist looked through her logs before answering "He received some visitors and then signed himself out after the doctor said he was ok."

Elle felt uneasy about this as she thanked the receptionist and left, rushing back to Zhou's apartment. Going inside as the door was unlocked thanks to her giving Jaeger her key, her master pointed toward Zhou's room and she ran into it. Instead of Zhou she saw an envelope on the bed. Jaeger closed the door as Elle picked it up and pulled the contents out. Her hands held the note softly as her eyes ran across the words.

_Elle,_

_I know Jaeger told you about who I really am. As such you should know I was called back to Headquarters. I know it's hard to fit everything into something as simple as a note like this but I wanted you to know everything that happened between us wasn't some simple piece of fiction to get close to you. Elle or Mike, I won't change how I feel about you._

_Zhou_

Elle held the letter in silence till her tears fell onto the note. Her knees grew weak as she sat down, her back against the bed as she crumpled the note in her fist and buried her face into her knees, her arms holding them close to her body "Asshole, this shits bothering me enough already."

After a time Jaeger opened the door to check on her. The smell of food wafting into the room "You need to eat. Use whatever was in the note tomorrow."

Before he could leave, she spoke up and caught his attention "You told me about fighting back the other day. I want you to call the others and tell them where to meet up. Make sure you give the old lady the details on the Permanence Committee. It's more their decision than mine to make."

Jaeger hesitated before he nodded "I'll do it tomorrow when you and Ryoga train. If anything it'll take a week for the information to reach her in a package. All of you can meet up in January so that'll give you about a month to train. Knowing how Ke Lun described your friends, they'll fight... is that what you want?"

Silence filled the room as Elle raised her head and looked at Jaeger with tears still fresh in her eyes.

_______________________________________________________________________

Weapons littered the rooftop as Ren held a sword in both hands while Mandy was blocking it with a large metal spike club. They pushed each other away as Mandy swung her arm and grabbed the handle of a axe and worked the handle as the head came loose form the stool it was buried in before she hurled it at Ren. Ren leaned to the side as his hand shot out and grabbed the axe, holding it in one hand and the sword in the other.

Mandy had closed the store down on Sundays to make room in Ren's training schedule for a full day of weaponry combat training. Every weapon she had in her arsenal was at their disposal as Ren and Mandy went head to head, the pupil gaining a liking for claws and metal staves as well as a few other random things.

"I told you, come at me like you plan to really hurt me Ren! The Permanence Committee doesn't pull punches judging from the fight you had with that one guy a while back."

Ren smirked as he hurled the sword at Mandy making her jump out of the way as it bounced off the ground from its momentum and buried the blade halfway through the brick wall. Ren reached behind him and slipped his fingers through around a grip and pulled out a long claw that was tucked into his belt it seemed "Trust me, I won't be either, but I can't have you getting too injured to help me train, now can I?"

"Cocky brat aren't ya?" Mandy chuckled before grabbing a chain on the ground and hurled the club at Ren. Pulling up the chain she revealed a sickle on one and and a knife on the other. She twirled the knife end before moving her arm and making the knife fly straight at Ren before she ran after it and swung with the sickle "Lets see what you've learned from all the months you've been here!"

_______________________________________________________________________

Alex leapt sideways as David hurled at him and threw a punch. The pair were sweating bullets as they fought to keep balance on tall tree stumps trimmed down to be enough to have only one foot on at a time. Their training had gone from practicing against objects to battle each other. To further this Ke Lun taught them some hand to hand moves so they wouldn't be completely useless. The old woman was balanced upon her staff which was in turned balanced upon a pole on the outer edges of the small cluster of poles she had erected. The cluster was roughly twenty five feet wide and circular.

"Come now, you're not even putting effort into it now lollygagger!" Ke Lun stated bluntly as David had on hand on a pole, and both feet on two more, his position was uncomfortable but kept him from falling down. David grunted as he strained and pushed himself up, but instead of going onto his feet her balanced himself on one hand while glaring at the old lady.

"Give it a rest you dried up old mummy! We've been at this for almost 8 hours straight!" David said as Alex leapt at him. David hefted himself up into the air as he looked down at the poles and Alex who missed him by no more than a foot at minimum. David twisted his body in the air and landed a kick against Alex's shoulder and sent him toppling backwards. David landed on the poles again and turned around as Alex regained his balance.

The old woman sighed and clapped her hands "Alright, it's time for dinner. Starting tomorrow however, you'll both be sparring against me. You'll need all the practice you can get at this rate."

Both of them swallowed hard before sharing nervous glances, their thoughts being the same 'We won't survive an hour....'

_______________________________________________________________________

In Japan, police were roping off a park that looked like it had become a war zone as craters littered the once green landscape, some of them still smoldering. People were still being questioned but statements say it was monsters, others say a super hero fighting evil, others thought it was a TV show or movie.

In the alley behind the closest building stood Kiyoshi and his pupil as they looked over the destruction they caused. Zack finally turned to Kiyoshi as he decided to speak about the park "I think we should stop for the day before we get arrested."

"I suppose three parks is enough for one day. We should find a new place to train while we're at it." Kiyoshi said as they turned and headed down the alley back to Kiyoshi's place.

"I wonder how long we can get away with destroying public property before they stop us..."

_______________________________________________________________________

Time had passed. Calls were made. Training was done. Christmas had shown all the pupils a softer side of their masters before the New Years call everyone got from Ke Lun. Ren had received his own set of weapons from Mandy. Alex and David were giving a feast and three days to sleep it off. Zack was given are rather 'interesting' present from Ero-chan and some of her friends. The long lost Tyler had a book written about his misadventures in Canada. Which brings us to Elle. Aside from getting some pictures of Jaeger, Ryoga, and herself added to her case she had yet to get the present Jaeger promised her on Christmas.

Elle broke away from Ryoga before throwing a punch at him, her hair still done up in a pigtail, a red sweater and black sweat pants on her body as the two brawled in the cold weather of early January. The two sparred off and blocked each others hits but Elle quickly held up her hands in a T shape "Hold up! I need a break."

"Again?! I thought you wanted to get stronger Elle." Ryoga said, shaking his head.

"I do, but going against you is like fighting a tank! I feel like I'm barely doing anything to you."

"A tank? Come on, you've got to be joking. Am I really that tough?"

"You should be, you were trained by the old women once in a while." Jaeger said from his collapsible camping chair. He stood up and put his hands into his coats pockets as he breathed out puffs of air at a slower more steady pace than the two fighters. He looks Ryoga and smiles before shaking his head and looking to Elle. He fishes around in his pocket before pulling something out and handing it to the red head "Here, belated Merry Christmas."

Elle took the object and saw it was wrapped in brown cloth. Unfolding it she blinked in surprise before holding it out "I can't take this!"

Jaeger held up his hand "Take it, you'll need all the help you can get against the Committee. Besides... I think you've done well. Even got me to teach you the Fate's Fist."

"The Fate's.... Fist?" Elle questioned, raising an eyebrow holding back a smile at the name of the technique.

"You don't have much time to stand around refusing things anyway. Come on, time for you to get packing." Jaeger said as they all headed toward the van. Elle looked down at the Mirror Knife that had been wrapped up in the brown cloth, the amplifier that Jaeger had shown her a month ago and smiled as she quickly chased after them.

_______________________________________________________________________

Standing in front of the Bremen Airport, Elle was dressed warmly for her trip, her bag slung over her shoulder. Ryoga and Jaeger standign in front of her as she bowed her head to them "Thanks.... I don't think I'll be forgetting about you guys anytime soon. Ryoga, I hope you get home ok."

"Don't worry about him, I promised to take him home if he stayed with us for a while. We'll be leaving shortly ourselves. Oh, one more thing." Jaeger held out a package and Elle took it undoing the binding and pulling out some papers that looked to be building layouts and photos.

"What's this stuff?"

"Permanence Committee layout, security, personnel, everything I could get on them. It's a copy of the same information I sent to Ke Lun. You need to head to the L.A. Marriott. You won't be staying there most likely, but you'll be meeting up there."

Elle slid the papers back into the envelope and smiled at Jaeger "Thanks. Take care of yourself."

With that said the two men were about to walk away when the red head quickly wrapped an arm around each of their shoulders and hugged them. She let them go after a moment and turned on her heel, jogging toward the airport as the two men watched her disappear through the doors. After a moment Jaeger pulled a cigarette out of his pocket and screwed it between his lips, lighting it up before speaking "Ryoga my young friend. I don't think Janis would rest in peace if I let Elle go off and face the Committee alone. On our way back to Japan, do you mind if we have a stop over in L.A.?"

Ryoga smiled as he shook his head "I can't say no to that can I? What kind of man would I be to let a girl like her run into danger like that?"

Jaeger smiled as he slapped Ryoga on the back and they headed in two different directions before Jaeger walked over and began to drag Ryoga in the right one.

_______________________________________________________________________

Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

If the Japanese knew what I had planned for their parks, they'd probably bomb the shit out of my house.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 25: Homeward Bound

P.S. Flim-flam-thank you ma'am

Omake (Super)Short:

Alex: *coughes for a bit*

Mike: You ok?

Alex: *coughs* Better than I was, I had the swine flu.

Mike: *inches away* Really?

Alex: *nods* Yeah, but I haven't turned into a pig yet.

Mike: You just want the tail so you can bounce around like Tigger, don't you?

Tigger: *busts through the ceiling and grabs Alex and Mike before bouncing off* GGGRRRRRREAT!


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter 25

Homeward Bound

Zack bowed to his master as he the old man smiled at him "You've done well these past few months, With practice you should be half as good as me someday."

"And on that day you'll be good enough to become my pupil!" Happosai chipped in merrily, the shorter of the two perverted old men having stopped by for another visit. Zack straightened himself up and smiled. He grabbed his bag off the floor beside him as he nodded to his master.

"I think your debt to.... _her_ is done now."

Kiyoshi almost clutched his chest as he grimly nodded before Zack turned and headed out the door. When he reached the street and pulled the strap of his bag tight against his shoulder as he watched his breath come out in a puff of smoke. Snow had set in on the streets in the past two weeks while he finished his training.

Turning, Prozack walked down street as he shoved his other hand in his pocket. His bag was full of various clothes he'd acquired with Ero-chan during his time in Akihabara and he had come to like the raver look he now sported thanks to his lover. Pulling his hand out of his pocket he grasped a cellphone that would work in America, The wallpaper on of him and Ero-chan, the only number in the phonebook being hers.

"Wish me luck Nanami." Zack said pocketing the phone and walking in the direction of Narita airport. His trip back to America going to be a long one, the time having come at last.

* * *

Alex and David stretched, their bodies still a bit stiff from the intense training Ke Lun had put them through in the past month. But ever since Christmas it's been more along the lines of daily exercise that lasted from sun up to sun down, an occasional break for food. But as they walked, their packs slung across their backs, they noticed how light they seemed from the time they were hiking through the wilds back when Fei Yin and Ren had dragged them to train originally.

Alex quickly adjusted the robes he was wearing, having found a set that Ren accidentally left behind. He had beaten David in a game of rock, paper, scissors over who would get to wear it as their clothes were shredded, burned, and utterly turned to rags from training. Ke Lun hopped along in front of them as they headed toward the closest town to begin their journey to Los Angeles.

"Finally going back to civilization, thank God." David said with a sigh of relief as they walked.

"Yeah, but you know we aren't going to be relaxing in L.A."

"I know, I know.... but still, we can have real beds to sleep in again." David said as he smiled to himself, imaging the feeling of sleeping on a mattress instead of some cot or hard wood floor.

"I'd be worrying more about the Permanence Committee now than I would about sleeping in a bed." Ke Lun spoke as she looked back at David and Alex. This kept them quiet as they began to think over how they were going to confront the actual Headquarters of the people that had been chasing them around.

After a time of walking through the woods in silence, they emerged beside a road and began to follow Ke Lun as she led them down it. A sound coming behind them made Alex and David turn around as they stuck their arms out, thumbs pointed down the road. Down the road a car came rocketing past them as a man sat on the hood shooting a flamethrower into the air as he laughed madly as he shouted to himself "THIS IS HOW YOU START A FOREST FIRE!"

The man was wearing a suit, had a red tie, short wild hair, and bullet holes in the back of his car. Aside form his laughter and the roar of the engine, the song Highway Star could be heard blaring out the car stereo. But the thing that concerned the roadside trio the most was the fact they saw no one behind the wheel.

Ke Lun shook her head "Americans...."

The sound of another vehicle spurred the two boys to turn their hands and drop their hands just in case it was another crazy person like the one that had sped past just a moment ago. A large van appeared a distance away and as it neared the three travelers it slowed down. The passenger side window rolled down and an overly friendly man poked his head out "Hey there friend, where you headed?"

"Los Angeles." Alex answered as the man pulled his head in and talked to the driver before poking it out again.

"Hop on in, we'll take you as far as we can before we have to turn off for our own destination."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Wait a minute! You guys aren't one of those freaky cults are you? Ya know, who dance naked and you want us to take off our clothes and feed us some special punch?" Alex said as he looked at the man sternly.

"No..." The man said as blinked in confusion. David snapped his fingers as him and Alex turned to each other, David speaking with a small smile on both their faces.

"Damn! We were so close."

* * *

A young boy in a blue zipped up hoodie with a white bucket hat over his head let his shifty eyes glance around the streets of the quiet town he was currently passing through. He crumbled up and tossed a McDonalds wrapper in the trash as he swallowed the last bit of burger in his mouth "It's good to finally have a cooked meal again, I'm tired of hunting for that shit."

Tyler licked his thumb as the Golden monkey resting on his shoulder looked around as well. The monkey was the only thing that made him stand out, but he only managed to get clothes for himself on his way out of Canada. Lon-chan and Tyler both turned their heads as a car engine backfired almost like a gun shot before they turned and quickly continued on to L.A.

"Think they'll be surprised that we actually heard about the plan?" Tyler asked as he looked at Lon-chan who nodded eagerly. The details of how they found out being rather unimpressive as Lon-chan changed into Min and checked in via phone calls with Ke Lun whenever the old woman was scheduled to go to the town for supplies on a weekly basis. Tyler crossed his arms over his chest as he shuddered in the cold winter air as the monkey mimicked the motion while Tyler hurried south, his destination being the same as many others.

* * *

Elle stepped out of Dulles, having used the passport she was given by Zhou when she first entered Europe. Making Elle's presence in America legal one and she wouldn't have to explain why an American like Mike was in Europe without a passport. However she didn't car about that right now. She was home.

She placed her cup of hot water on a divider as she adjusted her ponytail, having no need for it to be in a pigtail anymore. Her clothing were those that belonged to her male side as she changed upon arrival after deciding it best to steel herself for the upcoming battle. She found it easier to do if she was a man since she felt rather iffy in female form. Dumping the hot water on herself, she changed into a he. Looking around Mike saw no one really noticed the change and rummaged through his bag before removing a towel and tossing the empty cup into the trash.

"Spill something?" A security guard asked as Mike patted down his shirt.

"Yeah, wind knocked it off the divider while I was kneeling down." Mike lied with a smile.

The guard nodded in understanding "Might wanna change quick or get to your car before this cold weather gives you a cold."

Mike nodded as the guard kept going on. Mike patted his shirt with the towel as he hailed a cab, a grey car with a taxi business name, phone number, and logo appearing on the opposite side of the tall concrete divider. Mike climbed in and placed his only bag on the seat beside him as he leaned back in the warm vehicle, stating his destination to the driver.

"Take me to Felding."

* * *

The cab drove off after Mike paid the fare. Mike would have had to hitch hike all the way home if Jaeger hadn't been sneaky and stuffed a couple hundred US dollars in the package with the Committee information. Mike would have to thank him for that in the end but right now he looked up at the house in front of him. Looking around he saw none of the cars his family drove were present which made it that much easier to get in and grab stuff from his room before taking off to L.A.

Mike rummaged through a small side pouch of the traveling pack he had left with so long ago before digging out a key ring "Here's hoping the side door lock is still the old on."

Mike went around to the side of the house with his bag and walked down a concrete stairwell leading to a side door in the basement. Slipping the key into the lock he turned it and hte knob to find the door slip open. Pulling the key out, Mike closed the door behind him as he walked through the utility room, washer and dryer on the left along with a big freezer. On the right were tools and shelves with gardening chemicals, home improvement things, and various supplies.

A noise upstairs made Mike stop. Listening he noticed sound moving around. He would have thought it his family but they had all left by the lack of cars. Mike walked out of the utility room and to the right was the door leading into his room. Opening it he put his bag just inside the door and pulled the wrapped up Mirror Knife out and tucked it into his trench coat pocket before he slipped off his shoes and snuck out the room and up the stairs. Having spent years living in the house, he knew how to walk up the stairs without making it creak, all thanks to him wanting midnight snacks in his youth when he should have been asleep.

Getting upstairs he reached the landing and saw no one immediately but as he reached the top of the second set and looked left he saw someone coming out of his parents room with their TV. The person set it down as they hadn't heard or seen Mike yet "Christ this things heavy."

"Maybe next time we'll let your steal our light weight and slightly more expensive TV set." Mike said as the boy almost jumped out of his skin. The thief immediately scrambled to push his way past Mike how reached in his pocket while shoving the palm of his hand against the boys head making an illusion of the room spinning around. The boy seemed to trip over his own feet as Mike let go, the young thief hitting their head on the hard wood floor before groaning and turning on his side, clutching his head for a bit as Mike walked into the kitchen, grabbed a phone, and dialed for the police.

After being put on hold despite the fact he said he had someone in the house that was trying to steal his belongings, a woman came on the phone "This is the police, I was told you had an intruder."

"Yes, a thief trying to steal a TV. He's currently sitting on my couch."

"Can you ask this person for his name?"

"What's your name?" Mike asked looking at the boy.

"Warren."

"Got a last name 'Warren'?"

"Beady, Warren Beady."

"Says his name is Warren Beady." Mike said to the officer on the other side of the phone.

"How old is he?"

"How old are you?" Mike asked to Warren who was fiddling with his finger nails. Warren glared at mike before responding.

"Old enough to kick your butt through your skull and splatter your brains on the wall."

Mike raised an eyebrow at Warren before speaking into the phone "I'd say he's juvenile."

* * *

The cops slipped Warren into the back of a squad car after talking with Mike. Mike gave Warren a smile and wave as the young man stuck his tongue out at Mike while the car pulled away.

"Michael?"

Mike felt his blood go cold as he turned and saw his parents, brother, and his brothers wife. He smiled widely as he waved at them "Hi! Uh..... fancy meeting you here?"

Mike's mother approached him quickly and scooped him up in her arms as he let out an "Oof!" from the tightness of the hug. His sister in law doing the same. His father was a bit more locked jawed but the glazed look in his eyes told Mike he had worried his family enough that he'd have to explain things to them before leaving otherwise he'd never get to L.A.

He guided his family inside as he said he'd try to tell them the reason for his sudden disappearance. Family, it was one thing Mike never had a good handle on. After sitting them down he grabbed a mug and a glass. Filling the first with hot water, the second with cold. Before taking them into the living room he grabbed a towel and laid it out on the floor. His family looked at him with puzzled expressions before he placed the mug of hot water on the coffee table and held the one with cold water.

"Probably simpler to show you, but I doubt you'll understand things even if I explain them." Mike said as he raised the glass and dumped its contents over his head. His family went slack jawed and bug eyed at the red haired girl that looked like their son to some degree. Elle looked out at her family and sighed as she really didn't want to have to tell them about the curse.

"That spring water you got Dad, it was natural all right. Straight from a series of cursed springs from China, a place called Jusenkyo. Apparently whoever falls in the water there gets wet and-"

"Mike......." Everyone looked at Mike's brother AJ as he sighed "You aren't the only one he bought water for."

Elle blinked as she looked at her family, she pointed at AJ who merely nodded as she tried to grasp what was going on "Wait! You mean you too!? What hell Dad! Next you're going to tell me you sent a box of that stuff to your co-workers or your dojo!"

Elle had the inclination to sock her father in the face really hard as he tried not to make eye contact with this son turned girl. Mike's Mother quickly stood up and handed Elle the mug "Did you run because you were afraid of how we'd react? We've already gotten used to AJ's changes. Besides, now you're like the daughter we've never had."

"Not the time to be joking about that Mom." Mike said after dumping the hot water on himself and changing back. Mike used the towel to dry himself as he sighed "In fact, I think it best you forget I came home until I say its safe. Not only for your safety but AJs and anyone else Dad got cursed through his 'gracious' gift giving."

Mike's glare made the others silently agree about the Fathers screw up by buying cheap water as a souvenir that wound up cursing those splashed by it. AJ's wife, Lindsey quickly spoke up as she looked at Mike "Safe from what?"

This made everyone turn to Mike who lowered his head a bit before closing his eyes for a second. He opened them as he raised his head and looked at them "This may sound out there, but then again we know cursed springs exist.... There's a group of people out there who have made it their mission to permanently change people like AJ and myself. Ever since the night Dad brought those waters home, me and the others got cursed. We got approached by people that made it their mission to protect people like us."

"Protect us? What others?" AJ asked, confused.

"Alex, Tyler, David, and my friend Zack. We got approached because the Permanence Committee, the guys after us, have been trying to-" Mike went on with his explanation, detailing the months of training he had gone through to be able to defend himself. He left out major details such as his time with Zhou and Janis. He also left out the fact he was going to mount a counter attack against them, making up some B.S. story about going to L.A. to talk to a member of the Protections Committee that'd help them plead a case as if they were going to court with the Permanence Committee.

It was a chance, but it paid off as they bought his lie. Mike had finished talking to his family and they told him to call them once he'd finished their 'negotiations' with the Committees. In his room he packed fresh clothes and trashed his old ones that were torn up from training as he slipped the Mirror Knife back into his pack.

* * *

Mike flopped down onto his bed as he stared at the ceiling, his bag was packed, his family informed.... somewhat, and his time to leave was almost upon him. If anything he didn't want to sit still. In his mind the final battle was almost upon him, after that he'd have to try and get back to his life as usual, minus a few permanent changes.

A knock made him turn his head and see his brother walk in "What's up?"

AJ held up a wrapped up sandwich and a can of soda "Eat before you have to hit the road?"

"Sure." Mike sat up and took the food from his brother before unwrapping it and biting into it. The taste of multiple types of meat clashed with his taste buds as he chewed, AJ sitting on the bed while placing the soda between them.

"Listen, is there something you're not telling us? The way you described these guys, I don't think they're going to sit down for a chat and let you go scott free."

Mike slowed down mid chew before swallowing, AJ was a person he'd always turned to with things as he grew up. It wouldn't surprise Mike that he could see through the lie he told earlier "I'm going to L.A. to meet with the others, hopefully we can find a way to make them give up on coming after us and those around us."

"You're going to fight them? Force them to stand down?"

"It's looking like it will wind up going in that direction."

"Think you can take them on?"

"Trust me, I don't know what to think when it comes to these guys." Mike said taking another bit as he tried not to get discouraged by his brother questioning if they stood a chance.

"If you don't make it back.... can I have your 360?"

Mike almost choked on a bit of sandwich as he laughed, his brother grinning at him "I haven't even left yet and you're already calling dibs on my stuff? Thanks for that boost of confidence."

"It's my job, besides I got the red ring while you were gone, I'm kinda bored at home."

"You can borrow it when I leave. But if you break it, you owe me a new one." Mike smiled as AJ stood up. AJ stopped in the doorway as he looked at his younger brother.

"In the immortal words of The Doors: The time to hesitate is through."

Mike watched as he walked out of the door after quoting an old movie and old song as he chewed on the sandwich, muttering to himself after his brother was gone "That was the cheesiest thing you have ever said to me."

* * *

Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

If Los Angeles knew the havoc I was about to unleash on their streets they'd probably force the police to kick down my door and hit me with a taser.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out. My Family are also real people I changed to for the story. Although my brother Zack didn't make an appearance, he's real. OOOOHHHH is he real! And don't you forget it!

Watch for Chapter 26: RE:union

P.S. Don't tase me bro

Omake (Super)Short:

Mike: So AJ, you got cursed too huh?

AJ: *nods* Yeah, kinda sucks too

Mike: Really, why?

AJ: *Grabs a glass of water* Let me show you *Dumps water on himself*

Mike: *Gets wide eyed with a smile* A giant waffle! *looks around in a panic at the sound of a rumbling in the distance*

Kids: WAFFLE! *tackles AJ*

Mike: NNNOOOO!!!!!!!!

Kids: *start eating AJ*


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter 26

RE:union

The speed of the train had the wind whip Mike's Ponytail about behind him as he was crouched down and looking at the two men in front of him, both of them having approached him and informed him that they had planned to escort him to their headquarters to be changed. This prompted a bit of a showdown before Mike saw the only way to get out of their grasp quickly to buy some time to think of a plan was to get on the roof of the train.

The cold wind made him shiver as he squinted from the air blowing into his eyes. The two men were approaching him as he slowly stood, fighting too keep from loosing his footing and being tossed off the top of the train by the wind. The pressure was like someone was pushing against him heavily and he was fighting for control, swearing mentally he groaned at his choice of transport 'Damn it, I just had to take a train. If it wasn't for that stupid news report about a plane going down in Hawaii I could be in L.A. by this afternoon.'

Mike wished he hadn't left the Mirror Knife in his bag, but the last thing he needed was to be stopped by security or the police about having it in his possession. Slowly sliding a foot back he watched as one man actually moved quickly toward him, almost like he was ignoring the fact he might break something if he fell off the train. Mike quickly shifted his weight as the man threw a punch, Mike grasping the man and using both the mans forward movement as well as his lack of balance from moving with the wind and guided his body into a flip which made him bounce a few times across the rooftop before he feel off the side of the train. Mike went bug eyed and turned back to the other man as they both had the same look.

The other man slowly inched toward Mike before throwing a punch which Mike grabbed and twisted the mans arm before shoving him off the side of the train. He watched as the man was about to roll across the ground until he hit a tree which made Mike wince before looking around and making his way to the space between train cars and lowering himself down. He opened the door as he shuddered from the cold. He looked around and saw one man sitting to his right, looking at Mike in shock as he had seen the man hit the tree.

Mike looked around the car before pointing his thumb at the door he had just come through "No ticket."

* * *

Prozack sat on a bench along South Figueroa Street, a mere 3 blocks from the hotel they had all been instructed to meet at. He was sprawled across the bench, people looking at him as they passed primarily from the way he was dressed. He stared up at the sky as he let it out in a deep sigh "That was the longest and most hellish planeride of my life."

* * *

_A little over 6 hours ago_

Zack sat on the floor in the luggage compartment of the airplane he'd snuck aboard. Sneaking aboard being alot easier his second time around as he wasn't caught and made it on the plane without having to knock anyone out. He had spent some time sleeping but when he woke up he had begun meditating like Kiyoshi had showed him. Having spent the last two hours like he had, his legs were beginning to tell him to stand up.

The flight was already on finally approach toward the airport in Honolulu and he had to transfer flights to get to LAX. He sighed, knowing it was going to be a pain to track down the next departure as he stood up. The plane shifted and things in the luggage space rattled a bit before the plane righted itself, most likely making its way to the runway.

"State side at last right? The only reason I left you alone all this time was to wait for this moment. No one will think twice of some noise of a plane landing."

Zack whirled around as he saw a man further down in the luggage compartment. Walking into the light of the battery powered lamp Zack had, the young man took a step back before raising his hands into a stance. Xuia stood before him, his weathered features seemingly magnified by the poor light of the lamp. His grey hair was loose and shaggy just like the beard he had along his jawline. He rolled up the sleeves on his white button down shirt and showed muscular fore arms as he raised his hands as well "You don't have those two perverts here to save you this time boy, and I doubt you have the guts to use a chi attacks on this plane during a landing."

"During? No, but after landing is a different story." the two rushed each other as they blocked and threw blows at each other. Zack weaving out of the path of a few punches before spinning on his heel and raising his leg, smashing it against the old mans arms that were raised to prevent the kick from hitting him in a harmful way. However he hadn't expected the kick to throw him back throw the compartment and crash landing into a luggage container.

"Interesting, the old man taught you more than I had expected." Xiua stated as he stood up, however before he could rush Zack the plane jostled about as the wheels touched down, Zack holding on to a container as he kept himself from sliding down toward Xiua. Once the plane leveled out the two fighters moved toward each other. They clashed even more before Xiua focused a ball of chi into his hands and fired it off.

From an outside few it'd look like bomb went off in the belly of the plane before it collapsed onto its wheels and skidded across the tarmac. Inside Zack and Xiua kept fighting, trying to force the other toward the hole so they could throw them out but their fighting kept them moving and out of the danger of being scraped off the runway. The plane finally came to a halt as Zack ran through the luggage compartment and grabbed his bag before leaping out of the whole as the plane ground to a slow and steady halt.

Xiua quickly followed him as Zack threw a chi blast at him, the attack throwing the old man against the plane and leaving a large dent. Xiua glared at Zack before extending his arms and firing one of his own, the younger fighter going bug eyed before jumping out of the much more powerful attacks way. Zack scrambled to his feet as Xiua freed himself of the dent and landed on the ground. He stood and seemed ready to continue the fight but they heard the sound of sirens and looked over to see emergency rescue vehicles and Humvees with military personnel appear further away.

The two fighters shared one last heated glance before running in two different directions. Zack dug through his pack and pulled out a ball cap he'd bought as a gift for Mike when they met up, pulling it on his head as he hid his face while running toward the closest airport structure. Thankfully the plane had managed to pull off the runway before Xiua blew a hole through it and was in between two terminals so getting out of the open was alot easier than it would have been on the runway.

Zack quickly made his way around trying to find the main building of the airport to try and find the next flight when he heard voices. He ducked behind a truck as he heard two guys talking, smoking wafting up into the air.

"You think we should be out here? I heard a plane almost exploded."

"We're fine man, but we should hurry and get this luggage to the plane. They depart in a half hour."

"Half an hour my ass, they're going to get delayed by this. Which flight are we getting that junk to anyway?"

"Uh.... 235 to LAX I think, they're at gate C23."

"Lets get going then. Hey wanna get smashed after work?"

"Dude, that's stupid! I'm down."

Zack peaked up over the side of the truck and saw the two men climb on a cart and drive off toward the main building as it wasn't towing the luggage containers yet. Zack had a glimpse of their faces so hopefully he'd be able to track them down again if need be. Glancing in the truck, he saw papers on the seat before turning to walk away. He quickly stopped himself and looked back at the papers before opening the unlocked door and grabbing a layout for the airport. Checking the area around him, he saw that he was at B terminal. Taking off, Prozack headed to find his flight to LAX.

* * *

_Present_

Zack groaned as he pulled the cellphone Ero-chan had given him out of his pocket while he sat on the bench. Flipping it open, he looked at the photo that had been set as his wallpaper, a rather stunning picture of her from one of her photo shoots. He quickly opened the phone book and selected the only number, Ero-chans.

Prozack cleared his throat as he pressed the call button, lifting the phone to his ear. The sound of it dialing was cut short as Ero-chan's came over the end. Zack told her he was 'safely' in L.A. and left out key bits of information about his rather interesting stop over in Hawaii. After a small time spent talking they said their good byes and hung up, Zack staring at the phone for a moment before his thumbs shifted and pressed a series of buttons.

Hitting call he raised the phone to his ear again as it rang. Eventually a rather weary sounding woman picked up and Zack smiled "Hey Mom, It's Zack."

* * *

Tyler slammed the door on the truck as he turned and shouted at the driver "FOR THE LAST TIME YOU CAN'T HAVE SEX WITH MY MONKEY!"

The truck took off down the road as Lon-chan and Tyler watched it go, both of them being on the outskirts of northern L.A. They both scowled at the back of the truck as it turned the corner, the man frequently trying to pet Lon-chan or hold it in his lap while driving. Just before they had gotten out, the driver had asked if he could quote "drop is his fun stick in the monkey pit".

Tyler let Lon-chan down off his shoulders "You got feet, you can walk."

The odd pair of travelers heading South as they aimed to reach the hotel that had been picked as the groups destination for their rendezvous. Tyler fiddled with a strap on his upper right as it looked like a holster which held a water bottle on his leg like it was a loaded gun.

* * *

Alex snapped his leg up a few times as he smiled "These pants are far more comfortable and hell of a lot easier to move around it."

David and Ke Lun watched as Alex brushed off his Chinese attire as some dust had kicked up on it thanks to a scuffle with the biker looking group that was now in a heap behind them. The bikers had been going on about how Alex's new clothes reminded them of some "slant kid" and his "bitch boss" from a hole in the wall diner in San Diego. David on the other hand was still in ratty, worn clothes as he sighed.

The group was passing through a back alley in Los Angeles when the bikers had shown up, thankfully they weren't the smartest group of thugs one could encounter. As the trio left them beaten up in the alley, they turned onto South Figueroa Street and looked around before turning to head toward the direction they believed the hotel was in. David caught a few glances and looked down at his clothes "I look like a bum, I need to get some new clothes."

A blow to the head from Ke Lun made him rub the top of his head as the old woman spoke up "Shopping comes later, for now lets just focus on finding the hotel."

* * *

Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

If Hawaii knew about these fanfics, I'd probably be forced to dress in drag and do the hula.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 27: Hotel California

P.S. I plead the fifth!

Omake (Super)Short:

Everyone: *Silence as crickets chirp*

Author: What?!

Everyone: ..........

Author: I have nothing witty to say this time, get over it!

Mike: You're just lazy.

Author: What ever you say sissy boy

Mike: *eye twitches and pounces on Author*

Author: AAAAARRRRRRGGGGGHHHH!!!!! MY SPERM!

Alex: *shakes head* I saw that coming.

Tyler, David, Zack: *nods*


	27. A Jusenkyo Announcement

Author's note: Alright I'll say this now, I'm finishing Knights on this site. While people like to mention(alot) to me that it's not a fanfic if you have OCs, my only response will be this: It has original characters from the series, I may change how they act but that's my choice so bite me. OC or not the cast still includes the characters from the series so by a technicality it's a fanfic. Don't like it, don't read it. I don't force you to sit through my story nor do I want to have a debate with you about it. You have your view on fanfics as do I, they differ but that doesn't mean I tell you to take your story someplace else or to stop because you have X many reviews.

Reviews are nice because people can tell us where we need to IMPROVE upon our story telling or style. Not to tell us that our story belongs on this site or that site, that's what the PM system is for. Fictionpress has a manga section but looking it over, I saw it was not exactly for OC like fanfiction but more along the lines of manga style story telling. Heroes with epic abilities that contain the remains of a demon spirit in their body while defying the laws of physics and waving big penis shaped swords the size of buses around. If anything, the planned sequel to Knights might appear on Fictionpress after I write out all the characters from the Ranma series that were appearing in as secondary characters like in Knights.

Another thing, to the people who do enjoy this fanfic I would kindly ask that forgive the delay with 27 to this point. It's not an overly long chapter but I've been finalizing my employment somewhere. Also I'd appreciate your thoughts on the story and how I could improve upon it. I know I have typos and time skip like I'm playing hopscotch but that hopefully will get routed out of my writing soon.

Thank you for your time,

Oken Horatio.


	28. Chapter 27

Chapter 27

Hotel California

Ren and Mandy walked through the Marriott, having left from San Diego a few hours ago by bus. They spotted the rag tag group of travelers lounging on a pair of couches, the staff giving David a few looks as he was dressed in ragged, beat up clothes and Alex in Chinese clothes got a few glances as well. Approaching them, Ren and Mandy lowered their bags to the floor as they were greeted by a goodly number of the group. Ren smiled as he looked over Zack, David, and Alex "You guys look a bit different."

"I think a few months under this living piece of beef jerky is the cause for that." David said before getting bonked on the head again by the old woman.

"That was only a few months, imagine if I decided to make you my full time pupil." Ke Lun stated with a sharp glare as David chuckled and inched away from her for a bit.

"Now all we're missing is Tyler and Mike. Although, I think we should probably get a leg up on looking over that information that guy mailed to Ke Lun." Alex said as they all sat down around the table, Ke Lun pulling out a large envelope which she placed on the coffee table near the two couches.

"What drove these guys to make a group like this anyway?" Zack asked as he watched Alex lay out the contents of the envelope. Mandy knelt down beside the table as she spread the papers out a bit more, arranging them into blue prints, personnel, and such as they began to discuss the Permanence Committee.

"Well Fei Yin mentioned this before you all departed your homes for training. All three Committees were one big Committee along time ago. I'm not too sure on the reason for the split since I wasn't given the details. But I think Ke Lun might know more than me." Ren said as David pointed a finger at him and cocked an eyebrow.

"Wait..... you're apart of one of the Committees but you don't know the reason for the split? Did they draft you or were you drugged?"

"I was placed into the Committee when I was a child, I didn't really question the split since I was told we were helping people try to live normal lives." Ren said defensively as he shrugged.

"The reason was caused by an outsider. I never got to meet the man but he was a foreigner, I think his name was John..... Doe. He and his son visited the Committee leaders in China at the time and they refused his requests, even the large sums of money he offered. Don't bother asking me what he wanted, they never told me. But I can only guess it had something to do with Jusenkyo's water." Ke Lun said as Prozack lifted up a few profiles on the guards that would be carrying pistols.

"John Doe? How could you guys fall for such a stupid alias? Well whatever the reason was, the Permanence Committee must have felt strongly about what they're doing since they seem to be wanting to change everyone into their cursed forms." Zack said examining the profiles a bit.

"Yeah well the Nazi's must have felt strongly about taking over the world and killing Jews." Mandy said pulling a marker out of her bag and highlighting things on the blueprints and did the same to a few satellite view photos that could have come from Google.

"Nah, these guys sound more like the Spanish Inquisition." David said as he watched Mandy mark the map. Everyone looked up with someone jumped close to the table and propped their foot up on the corner of it.

"Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition!"

David, Alex, and Zack laughed as Tyler stood triumphantly on the corner of the table with Lon-chan doing the same on his shoulder before jumping at Ren and hugging the boy. Mandy grabbed the monkey and dragged it along with her bag to the bathroom. Mandy returned with Min Zhourin in her human form and properly dressed before shoving her at Ren "That seems more appropriate."

The two engaged Protection Committee members began to talk to each other in Chinese as the friends went back to the information. Alex picked up a satellite photo before looking at a few others "You know, this kind looks like some storage warehouse or something."

"It is, their Headquarters seems to be within a few retrofitted warehouses. These include housing, training facility, offices, and actual storage space. A little cliche I think, but the way they have this place laid it seems rather ingenious. Here, look at this." Mandy flipped a few blue prints to face Alex and David, Tyler and Zack coming around to look as well. Mandy pointed her marker to a large red bar she'd drawn to represent the gate "This is the front gate, and on the other side is a pair of buildings. Both buildings have doors on the front, sides, and back to allow them easy access to the outside. Good for fire safety from an outsiders point of view, but this makes them able to deploy their so called 'martial artists' alot quicker."

Pulling up a pair of blue prints with similar red bars of the front doors, Mandy pointed out the layout of them as Ren and Min joined the others "These two buildings are the ones we'd have to get past. Both have Barracks, training facilities in the back, and recreational areas. It looks like we're going to draw attention even if we sneak by as we're going to start a fight. Not sure how well trained you kids are or how well trained the guys working for the Permanence Committee are, but no matter how you slice it we're going to be knee deep in Kung Fu fighters."

"Going to be tough, but we're going to just show them we're not to be messed with and run like madmen to make sure we're not caught. Not like we're going to beat the hell out of their leaders." Tyler pitched in as he shrugged.

"Yeah, but lets wait for Mike before we continue planning this stuff out." Alex said and the others nodded in agreement before Zack looked at Tyler then at Min before going back to Tyler.

"How did you figure out about this gathering? Weren't you running around in the wild."

"Seems Min was calling in progress reports every time we got close to a town, kinda sneaky since I didn't learn about it till she had gotten word it was time to come back." Tyler said as the conversation looked to break away from their planning session. Mandy on the other hand looked over the information a bit more before stowing it away in the envelope.

"What did you do for training anyway? For that matter what have you been doing the past couple of months?" David asked as Tyler started to explain before stopping and fishing through his back pockets. He produced a small book with red cloven prints across the cover and the title in red letters reading 'Red Snow'. Tyler tossed the book to David who flipped it over and read the back cover, Ren looked over his shoulder and read aloud.

"Follow the blooming tale of the Canadian Chupacabra as we detail its path of terror that took a truckload of chickens, a Moose, several lumber jack homes, and two Mounties...."

Everyone looked up at Tyler as he shook his head and pointed at the book "I didn't kill no Mounties!"

* * *

"F'ing Smoker." Alex said as he shifted out of the path of David's cigarette smoke, having gotten some money from Zack who had apparently informed his parents about the random road trip to 'get it out of his system' before taking over the family business full time. They had wired him enough money to not only take care of himself but his friends as well. He had given David money, letting him buy a pair of cheapy souvenir clothes and a pack of cigarettes.

David waved away Alex's comment with his hand "I haven't smoked in months, after being through that training I'm surprised you aren't joining me."

"Maybe I'm just not in the mood to fill my lungs with tar." Alex muttered as he leaned against a pillar outside the hotel. Ren and Min were still inside, Tyler was being handed some cash by Zack before he jogged toward the doors which slide open and allowed him outside.

"I'm heading to the MacDonalds on the other side of the Parking Garage, I'll be back in a bit." Tyler said as he went by them without even stopping to ask if they wanted anything. Tyler kept going around the round portion of the hotel as it was a large disc attached to the standard rectangular building. After finishing his jog around it he slowed down and checked both ways before crossing a street.

Reaching the parking lot Tyler jumped a short concrete wall and slipped between two car before walking toward the center of the structure and heading down the center aisle the cars drive on. However he stopped short when a figure emerged, walking slowly to the center of the aisle as they tied a white bandanna with black spots on it around they shoulder length hair. Eventually they looked at Tyler and smiled a wide grin.

"Seems that only your friend Mike is missing now. Sadly he'll be too late to be captured with you and your friends." Said the boy that was probably half of Tyler's age and was only wearing his bandanna and a pair of black high water shorts. He didn't even have shoes on as he stood defiantly before Tyler.

"Who are you?"

"My name is Jigen."

* * *

Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

The L.A. Marriott was used without permission, if they ever found out about it I'm sure they wouldn't give me a free room for the night.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 28: Beast of Permanence

P.S. I didn't describe it but I want to imagine that David is wearing tight pants with sparkles and a T-shirt that is pink with the words "Fabulous" written on it...... WHAT?!

Omake (Super)Short:

Yang: At long last our secret weapon is revealed..... a half naked kid. *Stares at Author*

Author: WHAT?!

Yang: That P.S. comment was kinda gay but now you're throwing half naked children into your story. Do I need to call the police on some bad touch next Chapter?

Author: For that I'm going to let them kick your ass! I was thinking of letting the villain win but now you've pissed me off.

Yang: Ooooo what can you do to me?

Author *Calls out to Mike in the distance* MIKE! Yang called you a sissy boy!

Yang: Wait... what are yo-OH MY GOD!

Mike: *Is suddenly charging Yang like a Japanese Bullet train and pounces at him*

Yang: AAAAAGGGGHHHH!!!!!!!! MY SPERM!!!!!!

Author: Hehehe, that's what you get.


	29. Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Beast of Permanence

Reaching the parking lot Tyler jumped a short concrete wall and slipped between two car before walking toward the center of the structure and heading down the center aisle the cars drive on. However he stopped short when a figure emerged, walking slowly to the center of the aisle as they tied a white bandanna with black spots on it around they shoulder length hair. Eventually they looked at Tyler and smiled a wide grin.

"Seems that only your friend Mike is missing now. Sadly he'll be too late to be captured with you and your friends." Said the boy that was probably half of Tyler's age and was only wearing his bandanna and a pair of black high water shorts. He didn't even have shoes on as he stood defiantly before Tyler.

"Who are you?"

"My name is Jigen."

Tyler looked the kid over with a bit of skepticism in his eyes as he found it hard to believe this child who probably hasn't even hit puberty was talking about his capture like it was nothing. But then again, he didn't even know if the kid was a member of the Permanence Committee or just some homeless kid hired to say those things. Tyler scoffed as he waved the kid off dismissively "Right, I'm sure you'd make me wet my pants in fear but this isn't dream land. I don't wanna beat up a kid so go home and put some clothes on."

Tyler was about to start walking again when he saw the boy pull something out of his pocket.... a bottle of water. Tyler smirked as he moved his shirt, letting his finger tips tease his bottle of water like it was a six shooter and they were about to have a quick draw match "Trust me kid, even if you're a bear or something you're still going to lose."

"I know what you turn into Mr. Tiger, but I'm not a bear." Jigen said flipping the top off his water bottle of pouring it on himself. Tyler watched as Jigen backed up into the shadows and his shadow shifted around, growing larger and larger rapidly. Tyler blinked, dumbfounded by what was happening till he heard a cracking noise and the ceiling above Jigen broke apart and light spilled upon the massive cursed form of the once small child.

"HOLY SHIT!" Tyler spun on his heel as he began to run, water blasting out of a pipe as it drenched Tyler as he ran. The creatures lowered its head from the upper floor as it saw the water blocking its view and pressed forward, breaking apart chunks of the complex as it moved. The beast pushed through the water and saw an animal making its way toward the hotel as it went between two cars.

Tyler rocketed over the cement wall and bounced off the roof of a car passing by as he made his way to a side door leading into the hotel. You can imagine the surprise of several people as a strange looking tiger crashed through the glass and collapsed when it rammed the wall. Tyler took a moment to stagger to his feet and shake his head before running down the hall in an effort to lose the creature. His path would take him to employee areas as he ran into the kitchen and scared the crap out of two chefs two quickly held onto each other.

Outside however the car that had screeched to a stop would have its driver getting out and looking after the animal that had just run by, pulling his phone out to call for animal services. His call was cut short when something massive exploded out of the concrete parking structure. The creature roaring loudly as it flipped the mans car to the side and the man getting crushed beneath it. The beast sniffed the air as it eyed the broken doorway the tiger had gone through before it crashed into the Marriott building. Jigen's massive cursed form following the scent of the unique animal as it burrowed a hole through the hotel and destroyed it from the inside. Jigen also tramped people that were unfortunate enough to be in his path as he wreaked havoc in the hallways.

* * *

David and Alex made weird gestures as they talked, Ren catching a few words from their conversation. He wondered how they managed to get the words "MacGuyver" and "sex toy" in the same sentence so easily, but eventually gave up as he saw Min coming back from the bathroom. The group was about to question where Tyler was when someone ran through the lobby screaming about a Tiger, Mandy pointing toward the hallway the man had come from "My guess would be down that way."

Tyler burst into the lobby in his cursed form, frantically looking around before dashing over to the group as Alex and David stared at the animal, Prozack shaking his head "We're so getting thrown out for this."

Tyler panted as he looked behind him, his ears perking at something the others couldn't hear. He quickly gestured with his paws as he motioned toward the hallway than stood on his hind legs and made a scary looking motion. The people in the lobby all stared at this display as a few staff members picked up phones, some calling animal services while others called security and the manager. As Tyler tried to talk to them through growls and motions, Alex and David were chuckling at this, Ke Lun hopping off her seat and tapping Mandy to follow. The two woman headed out the front door as Mandy took her bag and the plans with her.

Ren noticed this, as did Min and they grabbed some bags and followed suit. However the boys still sat there chuckling at the tiger, Alex quickly throwing out "What's wrong boy? Little Timmy stuck down the well?"

Tyler gave up before grabbing the last pair of packs in his mouth and jerking his head toward the door. They looked at each other before an explosion shook the building and caused people to scream. The explosion had come from the kitchen area just down the hallway, causing the trio left behind to stare as something began shaking the building aside from the loud explosion. Tyler burst through a glass window about the same time that Jigen rammed his head through the wall over the front counter and roared.

"HOLY SHIT!" The trio let loose in unison before running after Tyler like bats out of hell. People screamed and began running in every direction as the massive creature burst through the wall after being stuck a moment and trampled the people that got in its way as he lowered its head and rammed the door and glass wall around them. Alex, David, and Prozack got free of the glass that blasted outward, followed by the Jigen who kept running and rammed an eighteen wheeler, knocking it on its side as it skidded across the pavement.

The boys all ran to the tiger's side as Min took the bags in its mouth and ran off, most likely to the place where Mandy and Ke Lun were going to observe the fight as Ren joined the rest of the boys. It was here together that they got their first real look at Jigen in broad daylight. A beast that easily dwarfed a full grown Asian Elephant with its height of 20 feet, its body covered in a grey fur, white along the stomach and chest. The head resembled more of a horse, a small horn growing upon the end of the snout. The feet of his monster resembled a tigers just like the legs, a long feline tail swaying behind it as Jigen turned his sights toward the boys.

"What the crap is that thing?!" David exclaimed while pointing at the monstrous beast before them.

"Here it is! His name is Jigen.... he's some kid that works for the Permanence Committee. He's like that tiger kid, he's a chimera." Mandy called out from further on down the street. David quickly caught the attention of the others as he looked quite serious.

"Alright boys, I have a plan..... run the fuck away!" David turned on his heel and ran in the opposite direction of Jigen, catching up to Mandy, Min, and Ke Lun. The others quickly nodded their agreement to the plan and turned tail, running away from the monster now behind them. Jigen growled as he started in their direction and began to go into a trot before breaking into a run as he closed in on the group of boys.

It wasn't long till Jigen was close to trampling the group under foot when a rumbling forced him to skid to a halt before falling over from lack of balance. The group being chased by the monster took this time to look back as they heard another explosion before witnessing the Marriott Hotel collapsing a few blocks away. They were dumbstruck by the event as a large cloud of dust washed over the surrounding streets. Ke Lun quickly drew them back to reality as they all kept moving out, Jigen disappearing in the large cloud of dust that swept through the streets.

Reaching the parking lot around the MacDonalds that was Tylers destination before Jigen attacked, they rested against the back of the building as they panted, catching their breaths before looking back to the cloud of dust as it started to slow as it made it past the parking garage. The sound of concrete cracking made them look over at David who had punched the building, the realization dawning on them that hundreds at least were trapped in the building that had collapsed. Alex was visibly glaring at the cloud, almost wishing that Jigen would come through so he could beat the crap out of the beast.

"Ke Lun, Min, Mandy, please go on ahead. I think this is one fight we can't outrun... or should even consider running from now." Ren said as they three women exchanged glances, Ke Lun understanding as she nodded and lead Min and Mandy away. David cracked his knuckles as they all moved away from the MacDonalds and waited, preparing themselves to take on the beast.

"This guy is strong so try not to get tossed around by him." Zack stated heading to the back while he started performing breathing exercises, trying to find his center so he might be able to be of more use to the group. As they prepared themselves mentally as well as physically, Jigen charged out of the dust. David and Alex split away, going around the sides of Jigen as Tyler roared and rushed head long at the beast. Tyler pounced up onto Jigens head, landing just past the stunted horn on the monsters head as he dug his cloven hoof like claws into Jigen's face.

Jigen yanked his head back as he roared in pain, Tyler flying off his head as he twisted his body through the air and landed behind him. Alex quickly took this time to jump up, his training with Ke Lun paying off as he made it onto Jigen back and run up to his head, grabbing his ears harshly as David moved under Jigen. David pulled his arm back, a single finger poised to strike before jabbing it into the ground, his voice rising out after the roar.

"Bakusai Tenketsu!" Shrapnel exploded out, the destroyed blacktop of the parking lot blasting up and pounding Jigen's stomach and chest as he reared up. David swore as he saw a large foot about to descend upon him when a blast of energy knocked the creature off balance. Looking back, David saw wisps of light fading from around Prozack who smiled as Ren ran forward to try and take a whack at felling the beast as Alex leapt off its head while Jigen was falling backward.

Jigen crashed into the parking structure and caused two car alarms to go off before whining out slowly as he crushed the cars beneath him. Ren leapt up and swung his arm, throwing knives flying out of his sleeve and burying themselves into Jigen's left front leg as he was getting up. Jigen roared before ramming into Ren and sending him through the MacDonalds glass window. The weapon user had crashed into the lobby and stirred a bit as he attempted to get up.

Tyler leapt up and grabbed ahold of Jigen's neck with his teeth before before flung around by Jigen as he thrashed about to get the Tiger off him. Tyler eventually lost his grip and flew past David who ducked just in time to not be crushed by his younger brother. Jigen lowered his head as he ran at David who was still crouched but got stopped by another blast of energy that caused the beast to stagger to the side as David and Tyler both got back to their feet and regrouped with Alex who was now standing beside Prozack.

"This guy just won't quit! Every time we hit him he just comes back for more." David said as Ren limped quickly around the corner of the building as he Jigen was shaking his head from the blow and steadied himself. The sounds of sirens and a helicopter in the distant made them swallow as they didn't want to be caught fighting Jigen or arrested before they had a chance to take on the Committee.

"Damn it, if we don't finish this guy now we're going to get busted." Zack stated as Jigen was steady again and looking back toward them with anger in his eyes. Alex smiled as he looked at the group.

"There is one thing we haven't tried yet. Obviously before our training this would have been a joke but now I think we can pull it off."

"What are you talking about?" Ren asked as Jigen scrapped a foot against the ground and lowered his head a bit.

"Think Smash Brothers." Alex grinned, almost letting out a chuckle. The others exchanged looks before sighing collectively. Jigen started to charge them again and they steeled themselves, having little choice in the matter as the four friends charged the monster heading toward them. Ren didn't move while he blinked as he was still confused.

Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack all leapt at Jigen's head as they prepared a strike of some kind. Tyler bearing his fangs, David pulling a balled up fist back, and Alex preparing to use the one technique Ke Lun taught him. Prozack on the other hand was glowing, his battle aura starting to form around him as he focused it into his hand. The four friends shifted, their attacks all impacting into Jigen's head as their voices shouted rather loudly.

"Falcon Punch!" As they connected, Prozacks battle aura exploded, the form resembling a rather demonic looking variation of his cursed form as the combined attack launched Jigen backwards. The creature crashed into a building on the other side of the street. The four of them landed and waited to see if Jigen would get back up but as the dust cleared they only saw the beast laying in the rubble twitching as it whimpered loudly.

The almost leapt out of their skins as they heard a Fire truck honk its horn down where the Marriott used to be and they turned on their heels. They grabbed Ren and made a break for it. Had the group stayed they would have been able to see two men emerging from part of the parking garage as they ran over to Jigen with a thermos in one of their hands. A black car pulled up in front of where Jigen had been knocked out as another man emerged and the other two began recovering their 'asset'.

The man that had gotten out of the car let the two others retrieve Jigen as he looked to where the group of friends had ran off to. Removing his sun glasses, Zhou simply stared as he heard the pouring of water behind him.

"So she hasn't arrived yet....."

* * *

Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

If Los Angeles knew that I had destroyed one of their Hotels I'm sure they'd put me in a steel cage death match with Jigen's Cursed form.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 29: Forward Unto Dawn

P.S. I know it's a bit short, but I really was finalizing my new job recently and this was mostly supposed to be centered around the battle with Jigen. You can expect 29 to be a bit longer though.

Omake (Super)Short:

Author: Man, I forgot how hard work can be sometimes.

Zhou: Hard days work?

Author: Yeah, I need to unwind.

Zhou: A hard days work deserves a hard days rest.

Elle: *appears in a maid outfit with a tray and some bottles* So drink Mike's hard lemonade.

Zhou: It's for the men.... who are hard *Gets pelted in the head with a bottle*

Elle: Stop looking up my skirt you bastard!


	30. Chapter 29

Chapter 29

Forward Unto Dawn

As a train began to pull itself into a station, three bodies were shoved off of the last car as Mike watched them roll to a stop as the train continued on. Three more Permanence goons had gotten on the train after the last two were thrown off by Mike a day ago. The three men luckily fell between the tracks and wouldn't get run over by a train departing Union Station as it passed through the train yard.

Mike went back inside and headed back toward his seat and he sat down, the train slowing down still as it come up to the platform before it stopped fully with a soft jerk. Mike grabbed his bag before heading toward the door, his face almost breaking into a smile at the thought of seeing his friends again after the months apart. He glanced up at a TV as he passed through the station before stopping cold and backing up, his eyes looking to the screen to see an aerial view of a destroyed building and a headline mentioning it was the Marriott.

Mike watched as the tape of it collapsing was replayed from a camera in the parking garage. It was then that he squinted at the screen, the form of some diminutive person in the middle of a group of people made him breath again. While the image was bad he also saw what looked be a tiger with them. Sitting down on a nearby bench he relaxed his mind from the thought that his friends were captured or worse.

After watching the rest of the report, Mike stood once more and continued on, lighting a cigarette once he exited the station. He needed something to help ease his nerves as he had to think of how he was going to meet up with them again. Pulling out the information on the Permanence Committee he walked while looking through it his plan may not be the best one, but finding the building and keeping an eye on it was his only hope now as he didn't know where to go.

"Damn it, times like these I wish we still had our cellphones."

* * *

Min turned the knob leading into the motel room that the group was staying at, their epic battle had thankfully not made the news as helicopters were more focused on the Hotel and less on the McDonalds parking lot where a giant monster looking horse thing got taken out by a 'Falcon Punch' from a group of young men. After which they all retreated, thankfully having all their bags still from when they ran out of the hotel. After wandering around a while they found a rather impressive motel to which they checked themselves in. Which brings us back to Min as she walked in the door with a bag in each hand "We're back. We found some good deals on the stuff you wanted Mandy."

"Next time someone else gets to play pack mule. I didn't know I was going to be doing this." David said as he came through the door with a larger number of bags than Min. Setting them down on the floor beside the first of the two beds, Min closed the door and placed her bags next to Davids.

"If we'd told you there was work involved, you'd have said no. We don't need you loafing about, now do we?" Ke Lun stated bluntly as Mandy began separating the bags. They had been assigned a few tasks while out shopping. Gather some food, gather a few things from various stores that Mandy wrote out, and get Alex and Davids some new clothes.

"I said no before, but you still shoved me out of the door to help." David grumbled as he grabbed a bag with his clothes and headed toward the bathroom. Alex was handed his clothes by Mandy and he set them near the bathroom door. Prozack and Tyler grabbed the food and laid it out on top of the rooms chesterdrawer as the table was covered in the information about the Committee they were planning to attack.

Min joined Ren and Ke Lun as they all looked over the layouts some more and talked to each other in their native tongue. Mandy in the mean time was laying out all her supplies across the table, scribbling things on a piece of paper as she went over them. Alex had pitted himself against Prozack and Tyler in an attempt to get food but his hand moved faster than they could blink as he walked away unwrapping one of the many sandwiches Min brought back from a deli. Alex peered over the things Mandy seemed to be indexing before finishing a bite of sandwich "What's all this stuff for anyway?"

"How did you guys plan to get out of there once you beat the crap out of those guys?" Mandy asked before gathering a few items together. One of these things being a short and rather thin metal pipe that she began sealing off on one end. Alex simply stared at the items as he took another bite of his sandwich, chewing slowly as the gears in his mind turned before clicking into place.

"I don't think they'll be impressed by your makeshift train engine at all." He said picking up another pipe before Mandy snatched it away. She placed it back in its position as Mandy pulled out a notebook and tossed it to Alex who caught it without much effort. Alex examined the book before opening the front cover and reading something aloud "IRA bomb manual. Property of Coppen McFeely..."

Alex couldn't help but stiffle a laugh as Mandy snatched the small book back as she'd forgotten about how stupid the name of its prior owner was. Tyler and Zack came over at the words "IRA" and "McFeely" as they pondered what was going on. Tyler then proceeded to ask the obvious question after looking at the notebook "What are you doing with an IRA bomb manual? Is there something we should know about you?"

"I had a thing for Irish guys when I lived in England, sue me. Besides he won't be needing the book back anytime soon...... Heed my advice, never date an Irish man unless you're positive they're not going to blow themselves up with their bomb that they stupidly put next to their alarm clock." Mandy said as she continued to assemble the groups 'escape' plan. The boys on the other hand had broken into laughter at the fate of Coppen McFeely and the fact that they'd never date an Irish guy in the first place.

David emerged from the bathroom a few moments after the laughter started, he adjusted a dark blue tie with black and white stripes. His attire was that of a cheap grey suit, minus the jacket as he didn't like the feeling of the jackets stiff shoulders. He did however have on a grey vest which he had button closed. His suit earned another burst of laughter from the group as Alex wiped a tear from his eye "What the hell is with the suit? You're not James Bond."

"Hey, if I'm going to whoop ass I should look good doing it, right?" David responded as he gave the others the finger and grabbed his sandwich. Tyler and Prozack did the same, everyone else digging into their deli sandwiches before gathering around the table. Mandy continued to assemble what looked to be an obvious pipe bomb as Ke Lun pointed out a recap of what Mandy said yesterday in the hotel.

"It would seem that no matter how we proceed, we're going to alert these two buildings no matter what. Be it from starting a fight in the rear building with offices or the front two with their barracks. It'd be wiser to merely blitz the barracks and cripple them before escaping." Ke Lun pointed out as the group listened, memories of the events yesterday planning in the groups minds as they had finished discussing the layout yesterday. They couldn't wait for Mike now, nor did they want to. The news reports had placed the number of death in the hundreds with more than that wounded.

"We're not going to cripple them." Alex said as he looked at the map. The group looked at him, knowing what he was planning before he said it.

"We're going to destroy them?" Prozack asked, knowing full well the answer was yes. Alex nodded as Ke Lun looked over each of them before shaking her head silently.

"If you want to get your fool selves killed, fine. Blitz the barracks and wipe out their numbers. It makes a fine demoralizer. From there it's just a matter of taking out their Masters and then the leader." Ke Lun stated as she went on about how staying together would be more vital in the long run as they could safe their strength by working together as a team. After wrapping up a strategy, the group began to go about doing their own thing to prepare themselves.

Zack whipped out his cellphone and called Ero-chan, Alex changed into the clothes he had been given. His new attire was a pair of black jeans and a red shirt with black lines on the side and sleeves. Tyler enjoyed another sandwich as they knew he wanted more than one. Min changed into some fresh clothes, mainly a pleated skirt, white blouse, and a black vest. She proceeded to serve Ke Lun and sat down, talking to her elder as she went over the layouts again. David stepped outside and smoked with Alex joining him despite his protest at him smoking.

Ren and Mandy prepped their weapons now that the bed was clear of all Mandy's bomb making materials, the weak sauce pipe bombs resting in a bag in the corner to be kept out of the way. A claw, bo staff, series of chains with various things on the ends, copious amounts of throwing darts, axe, pair of staplers, and a plunger were among Ren's arsenal. Mandy had lined up her trusty ladle along with a sword, knife, and what looked to be a pair of metal salad tongs.

"Are you guys really going to need all that stuff?" Tyler asked as he finished off his third sandwich. The master and pupil looked over the weapons before looking at each other and nodding.

"We could have brought more but we wanted to travel light." Mandy said as she began t stowing her weapons, Ren doing the same. David and Alex came in the front door as Alex muttered something to David who rolled his eyes.

"Alright, you boys should get some sleep. We'll go at night so it's harder to spot us." Ke Lun said, forcing the boys to get to sleep, Ren and Min taking a bed as Mandy took another. Everyone else slept on the floor except Ke Lun who sat at the table and looked over the boys, noting how much their training changed them from the first time she laid eyes on them. She smiled as her mind asked the question of if they would succeed.

* * *

The last of the guards at the gate fall over after a swift blow to the head from a ladle. The group all came to stand in front of the gate that led into the warehouses that held the Permanence Committees head quarters an they stared at the building as Min pulled out the plans. She looked at them then the buildings as she noted variations "Looks like these are a bit old, the attachments must have been added when they caught wind of our training efforts."

The group saw an addition was built between the front two warehouses, seemingly blocking the way to the back. Alex cracked his knuckles as Ren opened the gate through the little guard booth. Alex smiled as he walked forward "Doesn't change a thing, we have a plan and some stupid little addition won't stop us."

* * *

The sound fo someone yelling roused a few of the sleeping lackeys in on of the barracks before the wall exploded and blew a pair of bunk beds and their occupants across the room in a shower of wall chunks. The entire room was awake now as they all stagger or jumped to their feet and looked at the group of boys standing in the hole.

"What the hell?" one guy said as everyone slipped on some pants, one of them running out of the room. This was followed shortly by an alarm sounding throughout the complex. Alex merely grinned as he put his hands on his hips.

"Strike a pose!" the others took up stances or held their weapons at the ready as a strange looking Tiger roared ferociously. The two groups quickly lunging at each other.

* * *

Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

The next couple chapters are supposed to be longer, we're almost done with Knights and I'm trying to get a start on Crisis.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 30: Everybody Was Kung Fu Fighting

P.S. Happy Thanksgiving readers.

Omake (Super)Short:

Everyone: *sitting around at a table with a cooked bird of some kind on the table*

Alex: *takes a bite of the bird along with the others* Man this is good! Hey Ke Lun where did you get such a tasty Turkey?

Ke Lun: Turkey? No, this is an Osprey.

Everyone: *Room goes silent as they all look at their plates then notice Zack isn't at the table. They all scramble for the nearesty bathroom, open window, trash can, or pot*

Zack: *walks into the room* Hey gu-where the hell is everyone?

Ke Lun: Don't know, they all left in a big hurry though.

Zack: *notices food and grabs a piece of the bird meat and chews on it* Mmm! Tasty, what is this?


	31. Chapter 30

Authors Note: Sorry for the delay, I spent a week stuck in bed from a cold.

Chapter 30

Everybody Was Kung Fu Fighting

Alex and David stood back to back in the middle of a group of Committee goons. Alex smiled as the situation made him remember a movie, he turned his head to the side a bit while talking to David "Do you know.... Praying Mantis?"

"You're looking at him!" David laughed as they both throw up their arms in various stances and made Kung Fu noises before attacking the group. The goons were a bit surprised by the rather silly behavior their opponents were displaying as the two beat up the small group of men after quoting a Mel Brooks film. David punched the last member into some bunk beds before he headed out into the hall, Tyler and Ren having begun to clear a path further down toward a large area in the back.

Ke Lun, Mandy, and Min brought up the rear as they knocked out most of the stragglers as they moved up. David and Alex took out the majority of members they came across as Tyler and Ren threw them off balance with appearance and weapons springing out of almost nowhere. Zack was a go between and fought alongside Tyler and Ren or Alex and David. The didn't use any fancy moves so they could pace themselves. However they were finding it harder to just use them to take everyone out as the Committee goons were just that it seemed. Goons, albeit well trained goons they still went down.

"Dude, here I was thinking we'd be beating up a handful or two before running, these guys seem like push overs."Zack said to Ren as he round house kicked a goon into another and the second struggled to push his knocked out comrade off of him. Ren nodded in agreement as he was expecting more of a fight.

"You think it's the training we went through or are that we were just making this all some big hype?" Ren responded as he smashed the end of his bo staff into the shoulder of a goon, a pained yell escaping the mans lips as he clutched his shoulder. Ren pulled the staff back as he twirled it vertically and turned, bringing the end up, parrying a bo staff from a goon before shoving his foot out and kicked the goon away as they dropped their staff.

A loud thud behind him made Ren spin around to see a member that looked to have been coming up behind Ren was suddenly pressed to the ground by a large snarling tiger that quickly beat it's paws against the man's head like it was punching it before pouncing at another with its claws out. Tyler had been spring boarding his way from person to person ever since he'd made it into the hallway after their initial break in. The sit of a tiger launching itself through the air had made most of the members scream like little girls and flew before getting trampled by the tiger.

Ren smiled at Tyler pouncing at another person before he twirled his staff to let him carry it at the ready as he moved to another group of guys coming through a side door. David and Alex leaped through the air as they both tackled two guys aiming to work together to take down Zack from behind as Ke Lun used her staff and the Chestnut fist to take down three men at once while Mandy used her ladle to guide a punch and send a man into a wall while flipping him. Min smacked a man in the head with pair of tonfa that Mandy had brought with her from San Diego, the group having a nice selection of weapons still back at their motel room.

"This seems too easy Alex, where are their heavy hitters? Or the big guy that takes all of us to take down through some major team work?" David said as wiped a bit a sweat from his forehead. Alex kicked a guy in the chest and sent him tumbling over a couple of chairs before looking around the room. Amidst the fights, all he saw were the goons but the number didn't seem to be increasing anymore. Alex looked behind them and saw nothing down the hall.

"My spider sense is tingling David, something's not right.... We should check the other building." Alex said as the others finished off the remaining lackeys in the building before meeting up at the center of the large room they were in. As they all began to catch their breath David pointed out the same thing he just told Alex and they looked around.

"You guys are right, where are the big guns? In the movies they'd usually show up about now?" Zack said as he swept a hand through his blue hair and pushed it back out of his face.

"Well if you want to fight us that badly, how can we say now?" A voice called out before the side and back doors leading into the large room burst open and more lackeys piled into the room. Looking up they saw four people sitting on the rafters before they stepped off and fell into the decent amount of space between the group of intruders and the lackeys hugging the walls. Bao Fu was the first to land thanks to the weapons he had strapped to his back, namely Bertha, a rather wide Zweihander that he promptly pulled from it sheath while smiling at Ren. Xiua landed near Zack as he gave him a rather icy stare as they had a fight to finish from their battle in Hawaii. Isagami and Kanogami openly fuming at David and Alex.

"See, spider sense!" Alex said in a matter-of-fact tone as the boys all took up stances.

"Leave the weaklings to us, you boys just handle them!" Mandy ordered as the four boys nodded and charged their opponents.

* * *

Xiua smashed through the wall and into a hallway as Zack followed him through the hole, the goons behind him being attacked by Tyler who kept them from interfering. Zack looked around to see the extension had not only gone between the buildings but turned all three warehouses into on big building. His momentary distraction of looking around bought Xiua enough time to push off the wall he had been smashed into on the opposite wall before he reached out and grabbed Zack's head, yanking him to the side as he threw him down the hall one handed.

"Pay attention boy, you should have your head in the game before I rip it off your shoulders." Xiua grunted as he dusted himself off, pieces of wall that were still on his coat now clattering to the floor. Zack had hit the floor, sliding a ways before getting to his feet and holding his head briefly. The pain was momentary but would probably still surface if he moved his head the wrong way.

"You just seem so happy to see me again." Zack retorted as he stared at Xiua with a calm gaze, his temper not being something he'd lose to being hurled down the hall like a baseball. His body began to glow as he channeled his chi and focused it into his hands, quickly firing it off at Xiua. The older man raised his arms as he channeled a weaker blast against Zacks to soften the blow it would deal before he got thrown backward.

Xiua got to his feet and glared at the younger opponent he was facing the young man returning his gaze before they charged at each other and threw punches, hitting the other in the face. Xiua and Zack staggered for a moment before going right at each other again, blocking, striking, ducking, and weaving.

They exchanged their blows, Zack not aiming to harm just his face but the rest of his upper body, hitting his shoulders, clavicle, ribs, sternum, and his armpits. The armpit being a place most wouldn't aim for readily, but if you've spent time under a cheap shot fighter like Kiyoshi you'd learn where to defend and strike when you get the chance. Zack rammed the knuckles of his fist into the soft tissue of Xiua's armpit making him wince at the response his nerves shot through to his mind. The old man used his body to shove Zack away as they parted a short ways before going at it a again.

* * *

Bertha landed the last cut it needed, the bo staff in Rens hands snapping with a loud crack. The chinese guide backed away as Bao Fu took another swing at him. Ren was pushed back as Bao Fu took another, then another, followed by a another, his swings edging Ren back before he adjusted his grip on the two halves of the broken staff and knocked the flat edge of the Zweihander to the side before moving in, his other hand striking out at Bao Fu with remaining half of the staff it held. Bao Fu was smacked in side of his head and stumbled as he released his grip on the large weapon. Bao Fu didn't have much time to regain himself before both halves of the staff smashed into him, one half hitting his stomach and the other his right shoulder.

Ren had tossed the two halves of the staff and reached behind his back, seemingly pulling an small one handed axe out in one hand while the other was brandishing a claw. Bao Fu gripped his chest with one hand as he smirked at Ren, the boy having come prepared to fight him for real. Bao Fu reached onto his back and pulled off a double headed axe. He placed the end of shaft on the battle scarred floor while using a free hand to unclip the harness he was using to hold all his wepaons on his back. The harness released and the weapons all clang to the floor as the one eyed man in a boiler suit grinned at Ren before he raised the axe and moved in to attack him.

Ren knew he didn't stand a chance at blocking or parrying the blade of the weapon and side stepped the first swing which was straight from above. As he came at Bao Fu from the right he brought the hand holding his own axe up to try and cleave into the man. Bao Fu merely backed away as Ren noticed to late that he was unsheathing a sword hidden within the metal shaft of the weapon. His axe whooshed through the air as Bao Fu spun on his heel while side stepping, bringing the blade of the hidden sword around. Ren raised the hand wielding his claw and clashed it against the blade before being pushed back be Bao Fu.

Ren tripped over the shortened handle of the axe before he rolled out of the way as Bao Fu stabbed the blade at him. Using this chance Bao Fu yanked the Axe out of the floor and twirled both weapons in his hands as he approached Ren carefully as the young man sprung to his feet, his own weapons at the ready. Ren swung out with his axe which was parried by Bao Fu's sword, Ren followed up by jabbing at his opponent with the claw on his other hand.

Bao Fu acted on instinct and tried to back away but this didn't stop the claw from ripping through the front of his boiler suit before Ren slashed to the side. A large hole was formed on the upper abdomen section of boiler suit along with four red gashes from where the claw scrapped into Bao Fu's flesh. The one eyed warrior chuckled at the wound as before breathing in sharply "Oooo, you're going to be fun to fight."

"More than last time?"

"Helluva lot more!" Bao Fu answered as the two of them smirked at each other and swung their axes.

* * *

Alex caught another punch and struck Isagami in the face again, having been repeating the process ever since David lost the toss up again and was forced to fight Isagami's twin sister Kanogami. It was rather amusing to watch one of the Committee's so called Masters getting pushed around so easily by Alex without even trying. Isagami righted himself as he was starting to get a bruise on his face from being punched so many times "Think you're pretty tough don't ya?"

"No, you just suck. How the hell did you get into the Permanence Committee?" Alex asked as he cocked an eyebrow at the young man that was roughly his age.

"Shut up!" Isagami barked as he charged Alex again, throwing another punch Alex caught the punch but before he could a punch Isagami twist his body and threw himself against Alex, causing them to fall over. Alex let out a loud 'Oof!' as he hit the ground and had Isagami land on him. The Permanence fighter thrust his elbows down into Alex's ribs before rolling off and getting to his feet, Alex rolling in the opposite direction.

As Alex started to get to his feet Isagami ran at him and pulled his foot back, preparing to kick at him. Alex pushed off the ground with his hands as he rammed his shoulder into Isagami's stomach, tackling him to the ground. Setting up, Alex brought a fist back and rammed it into Isagami's face, striking him a few times "It's not nice, to cheap shot people!"

David watched Isagami get pummeled the so called "Master" not living up to his name. Just like the girl that was hunched over in front of him and panting. She had been punching and kicking at David, but given he wasn't exhausted to death like the last time she was having trouble landing hits. David, like Alex, began to question if this person was even supposed to be in the Permanence Committee. David side stepped a punch from Kanogami and raised his hand up, biting his lower lip as he judo chopped the back of her head near the base of her skull. He had bite his lip as he was trying to keep himself from hitting her too hard. She promptly hit the floor after passing out from the strike.

"Well....... that was easy." David scoffed before looking over to see Alex getting off of Isagami, having knocked him out. They both shrugged at the lack of difficulty they had taking down the two twins. They had expected something less anti-climatic like in the movies when they're forced to carry the fight on for hours at a time before the bad guy falls off a high space and gets impaled by a random pointed object.

"So what do we do now? Go back to fighting the lackeys?" David asked as Alex looked back at the rest of the room, fights taking place all around them as they saw the goons getting beaten by Tyler, Mandy, Min, and Ke Lun.

"No slacking!" Ke Lun called out as Alex and David glanced at each other and leapt at the nearest set of Permanence foot soldiers and started going off on them.

* * *

Screens lit up with images of the fights flashed in front of Yang's eyes as he reclined in a chair. The leader of the Permanence Committee's American branch smiled at the events unfolding, Bao Fu being forced to throw away his broken axe and brandished a sickle from the harness as Ren had broken his axe against his opponents before pulling out what looked like a plunger. Xiua had dislocated one of Zack's arms during the course of their fight before Zack managed to land a hammer fist blow to Xiua's neck, hitting a nerve with said blow. The rest of the group could be seen preventing Yangs followers from interfering with the two Masters fights.

"Seems like quite the little group of rebels. Are the remaining members ready?" Yang asked, glancing over to someone leaning on a table. The person had a shadow on them but that didn't hide them for long as they grabbed the sheathed sword resting against the table before they stood and walked into the light of the monitors.

"Assembled and ready, just waiting for our guests. Are they all here?" Zhou asked coming to a halt beside Yang and staring at the monitors. He saw the groups faces, everyone accounted for save for one.

"You can see for yourself they are. Now go get into position, I'll handle things if they manage to break past you." Yang said as Zhou nodded. Yang stood as both of them turned, leaving the small dark office and going into the hallway of the addition they had put on. Yang went left as Zhou went right, the former of the two entering a pair of double doors almost immediately while the other kept walking. Traversing the hall it was dimly lit, damp, and pipes lined the ceiling, the occasional pipe going through the floor from the ceiling.

Zhou shifted his sword into his left hand as his right went into his suit coat, his taste in fighting apparel similar to Davids in the way he'd rather go out looking good more than anything. He had stopped under one of the lights in the hall leading back to the office which was in turn next to the door leading to the room that Yang had entered which held a large number of Permanence members, these being officers of sorts within their organization as they had the lower tier lackeys up front to wear down the intruders.

Zhou pulled out something from his coat pocket after getting the damn thing to fit out of the hole. Zhou stared at a photo of him and Elle from the time they were together in Europe, almost regretting that their time there had to end. An flash of light made him look up to see Xiua go flying into the corner of the intersection of the addition. The old chi master hitting the corner and bouncing the opposite direction into a wall and crumbling in a heap to the floor. Zhou winced and refrained from going to check on the old man as he knew he couldn't abandon his post just yet.

Zhou relaxed when he heard a groan and saw Xiua attempt to get up before collapsing to the floor, most likely unconscious. Zhou stored the photo back into his pocket and grabbed the swords handle in his right hand before bringing it up, resting the sheathed blade on his shoulder as he looked down at his watch. The attack on the warehouses having begun close to 3 a.m. in the morning and it was now almost 4.

* * *

The gate was in ruins and the guards out cold. From where he stood Mike saw a large hole in the side of the building on his left and he what happened. He felt a tugging at the back of his mind telling him the fight might already be over but the sound of struggle was reaching him even from outside. Namely the sound of a tiger roaring that echoed through the building and out the gaping hole in the front of the warehouse.

"Looks like I still know how these guys think. They went and attacked the place without me too." Mike sighed as he shook his head. he passed a few guards before he stopped, his foot hitting something near the last one. Looking down he saw it was a gun, but when he crouched down he saw it was one of the tranquilizer guns the Committee used. Picking it up he pulled back on the bolt and saw the dart within before locking the slide back in place and slipping the gun into his trench coat's pocket.

Mike grabbed the bodies and dragged them out of sight to not draw attention to the building more than they already were. Releasing the first body behind the high wall around the warehouses he muttered to himself "Can't even think to hide the bodies of people they beat up, I'm surprised the cops haven't shown up yet."

* * *

Bao Fu hit the ground with a plunger stuck to his face as Ren caught his breath, having finally beat the older weapon user. He looked over to see Tyler scare off the last remaining conscious members of the lackeys that had flooded in with the Masters. He winced at the sound of Zack yelping in pain as he saw Ke Lun pop his arm back into place. Zack rubbed his shoulder a bit as he jerked his head toward the hole he and Xiua had made when they first started fighting "Check this out guys, we might be able to get to the rear building from here."

Ke Lun looked around as she saw some more lackeys coming through a side door "You boys go on ahead, we'll stay behind and take out any stragglers."

Alex and David nodded as the group of boys headed through the hole. They went down the hall as the sounds of fighting dimmed down behind them. They reached an intersection of the addition and saw the broken corner Xiua crashed into. Turning left they all headed in the direction that would lead them to the building in back and the one obstacle remaining between it and them. Zhou Jiyan.

He was fiddling with his sword and stopped when the five intruders came around the corner. The group approached him slowly as they spaced themselves apart to cover each other. Ren and Prozack took the lead as the former readied the claw he still had at the ready. Zhou smiled as he held his sword in one hand as he pointed it at the group "Nice entrance you boys made."

"You won't be hard to fight either buddy." Prozack stated as he still had a decent amount of fight in him even after taking on Xiua. Both him and Ren rushed Zhou, the last Master that the Permanence Committee still had left to throw at them. And for good reason, one swing and both of the young men were knocked back to their friends and onto their backs.

"You guys seem to like Monty Python references and such, so I'll make simple enough for you. The Black Knight always triumphs!" Zhou said as he slipped a hand into the pocket of his black suit. Ren and Zack got to their feet and held their stomachs, glaring at the man all the while.

"What are you going to do? Bleed on them?"

The group blinked in surprise before they turned around and smiled at the person that had just spoken "MIKE!"

Mike smirked as he nodded to his friends while he stood at the intersection "You guys go on ahead, I have a score to settle with this guy and I doubt he'll refuse."

The group turned and looked back at Zhou who was fixed on Mike, almost like the five of them didn't exist. Zhou stepped to the side and pointed his sword down the hall at the double doors "Yang Shui's in there, consider yourselves saved by the bell."

The group looked at Mike who nodded before they hugged the opposite wall and cautiously made their way past Zhou. After they made it past him Zhou moved back to the center and walked toward Mike as he smiled weakly as Mike lost the smirk he had flashed his friends. The group of five behind Zhou burst through the doors as Zhou spoke to Mike "It's nice to see you again."

Mike broke eye contact from Zhou as he looked at the floor, his right hand pushing his coat back as it reached for something. A moment later his hand pulled the Mirror Knife out and he held it at the ready, bringing his eyes back up to meet Zhous again. Zhou sighed as he realized how things had to be and brought his sword around in front of him and gripped the sheath in his left hand, yanking the blade out in an arc. The weapon sliced through a pipe on the wall beside him before he lowered his arm to his side and stared at the man before him "You know I can't hold back, even against you."

"Don't expect the same from me, 'Hubby'." Mike said, Zhou wincing from the sting the words brought to his heart.

"I will say this, I'm sorry I lied about who I worked for. But I'm not sorry about the time we shared together." Zhou stated as he tossed the empty sheath behind him. Mike glanced to his left, checking to see if anyone was coming out of the tunnel before speaking.

".......Neither am I. But I do plan to beat you senseless for lying to me like you did."

"And what will you do if you win?" Zhou asked as he knew he couldn't kill Mike either.

"I dunno.... maybe take up Jaeger's calling and aid those like myself I suppose." Mike shrugged looking back to Zhou.

"And.... if I win?"

"I'll become Elle fulltime." Mike answered bluntly.

Zhou smiled sadly as he shook his head, looking at Mike before raising his sword "It's sad we're reduced to this."

Mike shook his head as he held the knife at the ready "You know how indecisive I can be about this kind of crap, but that doesn't mean I won't fight for something. You want Elle, fight for her."

The words Mike spoke seemed to finalize their conversation as they both ran at each other, pulling back their weapons before swinging. A flash of sparks and the sound of metal striking metal echoes through the empty hallways before another rush of noise followed it, the two men clashing blades against one another. Their eyes locked on the other, scanning for a weakness to exploit even so soon in the fight.

Mike and Zhou locked blades again, Mike deciding it was time to make use of the skills taught to him. Zhou was taken by surprise when the knife seemed to burst up, growing into a sword equal to Zhou's in size. Mike pushed against his knife turned sword and throw Zhou back a bit, trying to knock him off balance. Zhou quickly used his momentum to hop backwards a short ways to avoid being hit so soon. He regained his balance and rushed Mike who raised his sword as Zhou sliced downward, his blade slicing through some pipes above them.

They both yelped and stumbled backward as a rush of cold water surged out of the pipes and washed over them. Elle coughed for a few moments as she had been facing up into the water when she yelped. Looking up she saw Zhou yanking off his suit coat and tossing it behind him before gripping his sword with both hands and looking at Elle. The two locked eyes as the sound of water rushing out of the pipe and hitting the floor echoed around them.

Elle reached up and ran a hand through her hair, pushing it back as the water had knocked some of it loose from the ponytail. Gripping her sword she charged at Zhou who did the same, their footsteps splashing as ran. Both of them raising their voices as they pulled back and swung at one another, the blade clashing again.

One of the weapons was knocked out of its wielders hands as it embedded itself into the concrete wall.

* * *

Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

Ok first off, I know I said I was going to make Crisis after I finished Knights but I can't now. Turns out I won't be able to deliver on this just yet, and here's why. 1) The place I was seeing about a job didn't hire me, they toyed with me so I need to go job hunting again. 2) I have a writing project I owe to someone in real life who would probably strangle me in my sleep if I didn't fulfill that agreement. 3) I'm looking to finish my book so I can't do Crisis while I write that and my side project that will keep the hound at bay at the same time.

However if you want to read more of the stuff I write, I go under the same username on fiction press. I have no stories out yet, but I will plan to produce a chapter of the story that will keep my friend at bay up before Knights is finished. Again, sorry but I will update my progress about things on that site.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 31: David Carradine, this Kung Fu is for you

P.S. Left 4 Dead 2 is fun to play when you're sick, because you can tell your friend that you're the boomer before you barf on them.

Omake (Super)Short!:

Left 4 Dead 2 Knights style

Tyler: *playing the role of Ellis* Boomer!

Author: *Still with a cold* BLLLAAUUGGGHHH!!!! *Vomits at group*

Prozack: *As the Jockey, jumps on Alex's head* RAWR FACE FUCK!

Alex: *playing the role Nick* Get it off! Get it off!

Ero-chan:*As Zoe because Rochelle sucks* Charger! *Shoots Prozack off of Alex*

Juggernaut: *Rams Elle and charges her into a wall* Yeah! It's the Juggernaut bitch!

David: *as Coach* I got ya! *Shoots Juggernaut*

Juggernaut: Silly bitch your weapons can not harm me!

Tyler and David: *kill Juggernaut and get Ero-chan up*

Heavy Weapons guy: *Special appearance as the tank* BOLOGNE! *punches Tyler and David through the air*

Ero and Alex: *take down tank with grenade launcher and chainsaw*

Heavy Weapons guy: *falling over* Pow! HAHAHAHA!

David: Help me up here!

Ero and Alex: *Helping Tyler and David up*

David: Sh! You hear that? Witch! Kill those lights!

Elle: *As the witch, sobs while wandering around*

Alex: Tyler get away from her!

Tyler: *about to poke Elle* But she's soooo cool!

Elle: *Screams and roflstomps Tyler* WRRRYYY!!!!!

(For those who don't get some of this, go to youtube and check out Left 4 Dead 2 intro - soundpack edition and also check the out the soundpack)


	32. Chapter 31

Chapter 31

David Carradine, this Kung Fu is for you

"MIKE!"

Mike smirked as he nodded to his friends while he stood at the intersection "You guys go on ahead, I have a score to settle with this guy and I doubt he'll refuse."

The group turned and looked back at Zhou who was fixed on Mike, almost like the five of them didn't exist. Zhou stepped to the side and pointed his sword down the hall at the double doors "Yang Shui's in there, consider yourselves saved by the bell."

The group looked at Mike who nodded before they hugged the opposite wall and cautiously made their way past Zhou. After they made it past him Zhou moved back to the center and walked toward Mike as he smiled weakly as Mike lost the smirk he had flashed his friends. The group of five behind Zhou burst through the doors....

* * *

As they burst through the doors a flood of light temporarily made them close their eyes before focusing. The last building of three was large and barren. Along the back wall they could stacks of large brown crates lining the wall and stacked 4 boxes high. One crate rested directly across from the door and was placed next to a table. Behind the table, pinned to the crates was a large map with numerous red dots plastered across it like one would see in some viral outbreak movie. Leaning on the table was their last target, a man who sat there smirking at them as he fiddled with a bottle similar to the ones that had cursed them, beside him was a coffee heater of some kind with an antique looking kettle upon it lines of chinese text scrawled across it. The man named Yang Shui, he spoke as he looked down to the bottle "Well I suppose Zhou either left or he's occupied with someone more powerful than you boys. Either way, congratulations on making it this far."

"Hey aren't those the bottles?" Zack asked quietly although his voice seemed to carry in the large quiet room.

"You're right! You son of a bitch! You're behind this?!" David bellowed as Alex grabbed him by the collar and yanked him back.

"Easy man... something's not right." He said looking around the empty room. Yang Shui chuckled and drew the boys eyes back to him although Tyler was sniffing about as he smelt something was off.

"No, I'm not behind cursing you. Although I have been finding alot of bottles like these being smuggled about lately. But that won't concern you boys for long, after all you've been fighting nothing more than cannon fodder till now." Snapping his fingers there was a loud clamor of movement as people appeared from above, the rafters lined with Committee members that descended to the ground and filled the massive space between Yang Shui and the boys.

"Damn it, I should have known." Alex muttered as everyone that was against them quickly moved as they lined up, forming lines of people and leaving a parade route straight to Yang. It was amazing how obvious the Permanence Leader was taunting the boys, and they were falling for it. Rushing forward they hoped to get to Yang before the men could descend upon them like a swarm of piranha. Too bad the piranha were greater in number and rested unlike the boys that now ran forward into the obvious trap.

Quickly surrounding them, the Committee members that moved in front of them all worked in groups to push each boy and the tiger chimera back. Placed in the center of a circle, the group of boys glanced around as they put their backs against each other and Tyler circled around them as he growled menacingly at the men that had trapped them. Had Ke Lun been with them, she would have bonked all of them on the head for being so stupid.

"So.... now what?" Ren asked as he kept his claw at the ready.

"Lets just have Zack blast a hole through their ranks and run for their leader." David said as he cracked his knuckles.

"Yeah, waste all my remaining strength on these guys and I'll have nothing for the last boss." Prozack rolled his eyes at Davids comment.

"Last boss? What is this a video game?" Alex asked glancing at Prozack before looking over the men around them.

"Wish it was, at least we'd get a continue or we could reset." Zack muttered looking around as well.

A few of the Committee members moved forward, aiming to strike after Yang had shouted something in Chinese. The boys all took up stances while Tyler leapt up at one, roaring loudly.

* * *

Zhou and Elle both yelped and stumbled backward as a rush of cold water surged out of the pipes Zhou had sliced into. Elle coughed a few moments as she had been facing up into the water when she yelped. Looking up she saw Zhou yanking off his suit coat and tossing it behind him before gripping his sword with both hands and looking at Elle. The two locked eyes as the sound of water rushing out of the pipe and hitting the floor echoed around them.

Elle reached up and ran a hand through her red hair, pushing it back as the water had knocked some of it loose from the ponytail. Gripping her sword she charged at Zhou who did the same, their footsteps splashing as they ran. Both of them raising their voices as they pulled back and swung at one another, their blades clashing again.

One of the weapons was knocked out of its wielders hands as it embedded itself into the concrete wall. Zhou pushed the disarmed Elle against a wall, releasing his own sword as it clattered to the ground beside them. His hands were placed on either side of her head as they stared at one another. Elle was a bit surprised by the sudden motions as Zhou had disarmed and pinned her almost in a single motion it had seemed.

"Please, yield. I don't wanna hurt you." Zhou said as he looked into Elle's eyes as they became less wide. The red head looked into his for a moment before glancing down and shaking her head.

"And what, abandon my friends in the next room? Save myself or go down with them, is that it?"

"No! Just... I'm not saying give them up. I just-"Zhou was cut off as Elle moved forward and slipped an arm around him while her lips pressed against his. His eyes took their turn being surprised as he hadn't expected her to give in before being reasoned with. Of course he could have been wrong as he winced after hearing a soft noise between them and pushed Elle back. Looking down his vision blurred as he saw something fuzzy attached to a tube sticking out of his stomach. Looking back up to Elle he saw her drop the black tranquilizer gun she must have pulled from her trench coat. Zhou raised a hand as he toppled over, pointing at her "Clever girl..."

He landed on his side with a splash and a soft Thwack! as the contents of the dart knocked him out cold. Moving beside him, Elle knelt down and rolled Zhou onto his back. Looking at him, she pushed strands of black hair out of his face while she tilted her head a bit to see it properly "Sorry Zhou. Right now my friends need me, that means our little squabble isn't top on my to do list. You may wanna fight for me, but I have to fight for them. "

Resting her hand on his cheek, Elle leaned down and planted a soft kiss on Zhou's lips. She lingered for a moment before pressing her forehead against his and whispering three words to him and standing up. She was about to search for the Mirror Knife when it was offered to her, causing her to jump when the person spoke "That won't deter him you know. He'll keep coming after you."

Blinking in shock, Elle took the knife as she looked at the man that had spoke. Behind the man stood Min, Mandy, Ke Lun and one more person walking up cautiously as he avoided the pipe splashing cold water across half the hall and tip toed over the water pooling on the floor. Elle flapped her mouth a bit before finding the power to speak "Jaeger?! How did you-"

"I was the one who told you where the Permanence Committees headquarters was in the first place. Beside I'm helping a mutual friend get home." Jaeger smirked as he jerked his head and stepped to the side as a boy in yellow and black stepped under the light from one of the few lights about the hallway.

"RYOGA!" Elle exclaimed with a smile as the other boy nodded, returning the smile.

* * *

Tyler tackled one of the man that had charged forward, the tiger looking to maul him a bit as he dove his open maw toward the mans shoulder. Before he could clamp down however, three men came up and grabbed the tiger and hoisted it up. After lifting the beast they tossed him back to the center of the circle where he landed with a loud thud before scrambling to his feet. Alex moved forward and thrust his foot out, landing a blow to one man and knocking him back to the outskirts of the circle centered around the group of boys.

Ren slashed at a few guys trying to come at the group, driving them back as the claw tore through a man's sleeve and drew blood from his arm. The plan of going in and pummeling the Permanence Committee taking a turn for the worst it seemed as the men around them seemed to go about taking the boys out slowly in order to wear them down. Alex returned to the group as he looked over the group, two men dragging the one Alex had hit back to the rear as more replaced them "These bastards certainly like to make things more difficult don't they?"

"And here I thought we were supposed to be the ones good at team work. They're taking turns having a whack at us, at this rate we'll be rummaging through garbage cans as animals." Zack growled in frustration as they all saw the trap for what it was and still fell for it.

"Give up, you're only delaying the inevitable at this rate." Yang said as he stayed by the table, watching the events unfolding before him with a smile. The group of young men before him on the verge of having nothing left after their loud break in.

"That's our line jerk off! We're the ones here to kick your ass!" David shouted at Yang, not willing to admit defeat just yet. Alex sensed this as he remembered there were others still coming to help them.

"Just cause you throw a shit ton of lackeys at us doesn't mean we're going to give up. We've come this far, we might as well finish this!" Alex shouted, the others nodding as they all tensed up readying themselves for that last charge into battle, but they were stopped by another voice speaking up as the doors leading into the room slammed open.

"How about you leave the lackeys to us, you can have their boss." All eyes turned to the Ell as she stood inside the doorway with the Mirror Knife brandished in her hand, her clothes still damp from her fight with Zhou. Around her stood the other people that had accompanied the group stick in the middle of the circle of cronies, plus a few additional allies that hadn't even started their energy yet. Elle swung the Mirror Knife upward, ending her swing with the knife pointed to the ceiling as a wall of fire erupted upward between the trapped boys and the lackeys. The fire shot forward Yang and began to widen as it parted the Permanence Committee members like the red sea, leaving a path straight to Yang for Alex, David, Ren, Tyler, and Zack to use.

Through the fire Yang and Jaeger locked eyes, the latter glaring angrily at the current Permanence leader. Yang smirked as he saw this immediately pushing off of the table as he stood up. He shrugged off the robe around his shoulders as it fell to the floor, revealing the simple black long sleeve shirt and pants with a golden dragon crawling up the left leg. Cracking his knuckles he called out to all the men under his command "Leave these five whelps to me, the rest of you take out their comrades! Crush them with everything you've got!"

The lackeys all gave a unified shout as they turned their attention to Elle and the others who promptly rushed forward, forming a wall as they readied what weapons they had or took up stances. As the first wave of Permanence members descended upon them Elle smiled as she saw her friends rushing toward Yang. Before they came upon them Elle scoffed as she spoke the first thing on her mind "If this was a movie they probably start playing some awesome music right about now."

The Permanence members came upon the line of reinforcements as they shouted as they two groups clashed. The final battle reaching its peak as Yang beckoned Alex and the others forward as he took up his own stance and watched Tyler barrel forward before sailing through the air at him as he released a ferocious roar.

* * *

Disclaimer time!

Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½, was used as the basis for this story, as such all curses, locations, and characters in current and future chapters that are not of my own design are used without permission.

Sorry about the delay, December got devoted to family for the most part and I've only recently gotten the writing bug back. Somewhere between posting chapters 32 or 33 I'll try to get the first chapter or two of that other story up on Fictionpress.

The characters Mike, Alex, David, Tyler, and Prozack are based on actually people with notable alterations from their real counterparts. These changes may be physiological, behavioral, or just down right psychotic in order to make them stand out.

Watch for Chapter 32: Ballroom Blitz

P.S. I got some rifftraxs at , awesome stuff.


End file.
